Of Girls and Guys
by TheBillFanatic1994
Summary: Damon is a vampire living in a small town with his baby brother, living out eternity in sarcastic, suggestive misery. Piper is a teenage mother trying her best to fit in. Will these two opposites be goood together, or will there differences be too much?
1. Chapter 1

_Hey I'm Rachel and this is a Vampire Diaries story that has just being playing on my mind for weeks. I've finally decided to just get it out there and see what people think about it. Basically it's a fanfic based around Damon and a girl i've created called Piper. But i'll let you read to find out what its really about. But i will give you some idea of what's happened up until now. Ok so the s__tory is set at the end of season 1/beginning of series 2ish, but the kiss between Damon and Katherine (believing it was Elena) never happened. The big vampire attack in Founder's day still did happen but the crash of the car with Caroline, Matt and Tyler didn't happen, which is why Caroline isn't a vampire (Tyler wasn't driving, Caroline was). Damon does have feelings for Elena, but they aren't as big as love. Katherine hasn't come back, still working through others. John Gilbert has left and has given Jeremy his ring. So that's all you really need to know on that. I hope you enjoy and I'd really apreciate some feedback good or bad :) Please read and review thanks x _

_Chapter 1 _

"Are we there yet?" Carter whined loudly, pulling at his seat belt away from his body and letting it flick back to hit him squarely in his chest.

Mom reached back and slapped Carter's hand away from the belt. I rolled my eyes at him but returned to running my fingers through Athena's hair. Her soft, brown curly hair ran through my fingers; it was the only way to make her sleep in the car. With my free hand I drummed my fingers on the seat in front of me while resting my head against the window.

"Is Thea still sleeping?" Mom asked me, glancing at me in the review mirror.

"Can you hear her crying?" I joked before flashing a little smile.

Mom laughed and turned back to the road. Carter whined a little more, fidgeting in his seat. I flung my arm out and pinned him to his seat.

"Sit still Carter!" I hissed "you're going to wake Thea!"

Carter stuck out his tongue but stopped squirming under my arm. Libby, my non-identical twin sister rode shotgun, her feet were resting on the dashboard in front of her where she was annoyingly tapping them to the beat of the music blasting out from her iPod. I was surprised that it wasn't waking Athena, usually she was a light sleeper but for some strange reason she was behaving herself and refraining from screeching and wailing.

"Could you turn that racket down please, Lib?" Mom asked, gesturing with one hand towards her iPod.

The music turned up louder, and I could see the small smirk playing on Libby's lips. I shook my head. Mom's shoulder's tensed and the muscle in her jaw stood out prominently, her hands tightened around the steering wheel.

"Libby" Mom said tersely "turn that down before you wake Thea. If she wakes up then all hell breaks loose, is that what you want?"

She ignored Mom the way she always did, if anything the music got even louder. Mom's lips formed a hard line and the wrinkles on her forehead deepened considerably. Libby loved to push Mom's buttons, in fact, Libby liked to push anyone's buttons; it was what Libby did. And she was good at it, hell she was an expert in the subject. Libby knew exactly what set everyone off. With Mom it was her music. With Carter she stole his games console or pulled his hair. And with me all she had to do was catch me on an off day. Usually she left me alone, we had this mutual understanding. Don't get me wrong, I love my sister but she can be a pain in the ass when she wants to be, and we don't always see eye to eye. But, she loves me too, and she knows that I've got enough on my plate dealing with Athena without dealing with her petty point scoring. The only person who got off scot-free was Athena. Libby doted on Athena as if she were her own child and was always offering to look after her for me so that I could have a quick nap or catch up on my school work.

"Are we there yet?" Carter whined once more.

"Nearly" Mom assured him.

"How far is nearly?" Carter probed once more.

"Five minutes Carter" Mom told him.

Carter folder his arms across his chest and pouted. He was five years old, and at that age where his favourite thing to do was to question your every word. It was a constant stream of 'why's that for?', 'why did you do that?', 'how though?' or 'can I have a go?' It was at times like this that I understood the reason why Mom said three kids were more than enough.

The car we were travelling was an SUV that Mom had bought second hand with some of the money we'd made selling the house back in Florida. It was black on the outside with leather seats on the inside. It had that posh car smell. Mom said that it made us look 'rich' and 'respectable'. I had laughed at that and told her that when they saw that I was a teenage parent they'd soon rethink the respectable part. At that she'd pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes at me, telling me that no matter what anyone told me, I was a respectable young lady. We had never been a rich family, in fact we were anything but; but we'd never been at the bottom of the ladder, there had always been some money around. Our house back in Florida had been left to my Mom by her grandparents years ago; it was an old house that had been around for generations. But when dad bailed out on us two months ago we started struggling to make ends meet. In the end we'd had to sell up and move back to my Mom's home town where my aunt and two cousins lived.

We didn't drive for long before we reached Mystic Falls, Virginia. It was a nice little town. It had a high school – that Libby and I would attend – a restaurant called the 'Mystic Grill' and a bunch of other little 'hotspots' as Mom called them. She'd always sighed wistfully whenever she thought of her hometown, she'd wanted to move back here years ago but dad worked on the oil rigs and wouldn't move. She'd been so head over heels in love with him at the time; she never stood up to him, she lived in a dream world. Then he found a girlfriend, Mandy, a fitness coach from New York and moved away, Mom was pulled back down to earth with a bang.

Mom drove through the town with an almost happy look on her face; her eyes didn't seem to hold as much pain as they once had. Mom drove into our new street, a small smile pulling at her lips. The street seemed nice, it was filled with houses with white picket fences, the type you imagine in movies. I had to admit that it was a good looking place.

Our house was near the end of the street, the house was a little smaller than the rest but still just as pretty. It had white walls and big windows with window boxes filled with flowers. It had a small garden with a fence around it, it wasn't huge but it was big enough for Carter and Athena to play in. I snatched a glance at Libby; even she looked like she wanted to smile. The removal van was already parked in the driveway and the two balding removal men were already unloading the contents of the van into the house.

"Here we are: 38 Fountain's Close, Mystic Falls, Virginia!" Mom exclaimed as she opened the car door.

I unbuckled Athena's car seat as the others climbed out of the car. Expertly, I lifted Athena carefully and held her to my chest while I slung her oversized bag over my shoulder and shut the car door as softly as I could. I didn't want to risk waking her up. She rested her soft, warm head against my shoulder and I planted a little kiss to her rosy cheek.

"What do you think?" Mom asked us.

"I like it" I enthused.

"Me too" Carter squealed.

Libby simply shrugged but I could tell by her eyes that she too liked the house. Mom chose to not pick a fight with Libby; that got no-one anywhere. Instead, Mom clapped her hands together and grinned.

"Ok, your Aunt Jenna should be here soon with Jeremy and Elena to help us unpack… oh there they're now" Mom smiled, pointing down the street towards the four people walking towards us.

I had met Aunt Jenna numerous times, when she'd moved out of Mystic Falls to go to college, she too moved to Florida, she only moved back to Mystic Falls when Jeremy and Elena's Mom and dad died in a car crash. When I was little I was close to Jeremy and Elena, but my dad didn't like them and limited there visits to once a year when I was twelve. It had been over a year since I'd last seen them. I had always been a little envious of Elena, she'd had it all. She had the loving parents; I had the father who couldn't give a crap about me. She had the cool best friends; I was a bit of a misfit.

I didn't recognise the fourth person who was walking up the street with Aunt Jenna, Jeremy and Elena, but since he had an arm wrapped around Elena I assumed he was her boyfriend. As they got closer I realised he was good looking, but not my type. He had that big hair that was the craze since _Twilight _came on the scene and a nice smile. Elena had a smile on her face too, it seemed like things were looking up for her; Mom had warned me to tread carefully around Elena and Jeremy because they would still be grieving their losses, but she didn't seem to be coping too badly. But even I could see the still present pieces of pain on her face.

Mom had to hold Carter back to stop him from running into the road towards him, he was grinning like a maniac. Aunt Jenna was grinning too, from ear to ear, at the sight of us. Even I was smiling; it had been far too long. Mom let go of Carter and he ran straight for Aunt Jenna, he wrapped his arms around her and squeezed tight. We all laughed at the sight. Aunt Jenna's face lit up at the sight of Athena, she wiggled out of Carter's grip and, with arms outstretched towards my baby, almost ran towards me. With a laugh I handed her over and watched while Aunt Jenna cradled her to her chest.

"Who's a beautiful baby? Who's a beautiful baby? Athena is! Yes she is! Athena is!" Aunt Jenna cooed.

I rolled my eyes and turned to Jeremy, Elena and the mystery man. Elena and I smiled at each other before she dashed forward and pulled me into a tight hug. The guy stepped back and watched us with a happy expression on his face. Oh god he was a love struck teenager.

"Oh I've missed you Piper!" Elena enthused with a giggle as she hugged me.

A mass of long brown hair fell into my face but I didn't really care; it felt good to have my family with me without worrying about dad sending them away. Maybe this could be a new start for us, a chance to move on and start a fresh. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Libby looking uncomfortable; she kept fidgeting and shifting from foot to foot. I felt sorry for Libby; she was always caught between wanting to get to know people and not having the courage to do so. Libby had once been an outgoing person, the type of girl who had friends galore and a fair few boys interested in her. But now, she was untrusting and unwilling to give anyone a chance. I could understand it, I was the same; how can you trust when you've been betrayed so badly. But I wanted to move past that feeling; I was willing to give it a shot.

"Where are my manners? This" she said, gesturing to the guy beside her "is Stefan Salvatore, my boyfriend. And Stefan, this is Piper Waters". I reached out a hand and he shook it with a firm, gentlemanly handshake.

"It's lovely to meet you Piper" Stefan said with a smile.

"Thank you. It's lovely to meet you too Stefan".

"Hey Jeremy" I grinned, turning to face my cousin "how's it going?"

Jeremy and I had always been pretty close too, he was younger than me but he always acted my age if not older. We emailed a lot and he helped me through when dad left.

A lot of my family, most of them were on my dad's side, had reacted badly when I got pregnant, they refused to talk to me, called me 'a good for nothing whore'. But, Aunt Jenna, Jeremy and Elena had been ok with it when I was finally allowed to tell them. Dad had forbidden me from telling them, saying I brought shame on the family. It was only when he left that Jeremy and Elena found out. Aunt Jenna already knew, she'd been in Florida when I got pregnant. She was supportive of me and when she moved back to Mystic Falls she promised to keep Athena a secret until I was ready for people to know. It wasn't that I was ashamed of Athena, she was my baby girl, I'd die before I let anyone hurt her… I don't know what it was, but some part of me didn't want to admit to Jeremy and Elena that my life wasn't how I planned it. I didn't want them to think bad of me.

"Here you go" Aunt Jenna murmured handing a now awake Athena back to me "I'm going to go help your Mom inside".

Luckily, Athena didn't cry. Instead, she smiled a gummy smile up at me. She wrapped her arms around my neck and held on to me as if her life depended on it.

"God you're looking _fiiinnne _Piper! You only had Thea…what, three months ago? And you're looking good on it" Elena grinned, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

Normally I would have laughed at this; it was just Elena joking on. But I blushed. Ever since Athena was born I'd become a whole lot more self conscious. Instead of the once flat belly I had flab. And instead of the slight curve for hips I had big, child-bearing hips. Oh the joys of motherhood.

"Say that to my stretch marks and my chapped nipples" I rebuked.

Elena laughed at my remark but I wasn't paying much attention to her. Stefan was glancing between Athena and I. From the look on his face he seemed more shocked than anything else; he didn't look disgusted or embarrassed for me like some people did. But he soon returned to his happy expression and he smiled at me a little more openly.

"This is Thea" I introduced.

Stefan smiled and reached out a finger towards Athena. Athena grabbed onto his outstretched finger with her whole hand. She shook his finger up and down with a little girl grin on her face. Stefan's face lit up.

"Aww" Elena beamed "she likes you Stefan!"

"You don't need to sound so surprised" he grinned.

"Are you guys going to come help?" Mom shouted from the doorway, her hand shielded her eyes from the sun.

I rolled my eyes along with Elena, Jeremy and Libby before we all headed towards the house to help unpack our belongings, moving things into our new home. The place where Athena would grow up, the place where everything would start again. A feeling stirred inside me, like a butterfly flapping its wings, hope, it was hope.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hello fanfictioners (is that a word? Oh well it is to me) _

_Ok first things first i wanted to thank "cdsnow", "musicluver246", "xxdarkvampireangerlxx" and "Ann" for leaving me some lovely reviews :) They are much appreciated. Also, i would like to give a big thankyou to everyone who added me to story/author/favourite story alerts. It really does mean a lot to me that people like my writing enough to spend a little bit of time reviewing. So once again thank you. Moving on...chapter 2 is up, and i know its a little short but i just wanted this chapter to get the family atmosphere as well as the first meeting with Damon right. I promise that the next chapter is longer. So please let me know what you think. R&R :) _

_Disclaimer: i dont own anything recognisable...only my own characters. _

Chapter 2 

With all of us working on the house, it didn't take too long for everything to be separated into their designated rooms. After three hours most of the rooms in the house were near enough sorted and the others weren't far off. Mom and Jeremy worked on the kitchen, while Aunt Jenna and Libby worked on the lounge. Elena and I did mine and Athena's room while Stefan and Carter made up Carter's room. After a break for some Spaghetti Bolognese, that Mom made, we worked on the two small bathrooms and the two remaining bedrooms.

I expected the task of moving in to be daunting and a test of my patience, but instead I found it to be…fun. It was good catching up with Elena, we talked about Elena's best friends Bonnie and Caroline, we talked about how she was doing in school…we just talked. It had been a long time since I'd been able to just talk face to face with someone of my own age who wasn't my sister.

It was strange moving into a smaller house than we were used to. But, in this house I wasn't reminded of my dad. It was small, but it was big enough for us. The four bedrooms were roomy, both Carter and Libby big rooms; my room was just as big as theirs but with my stuff plus Athena's things it felt considerably smaller. But I didn't mind. As long as I was out of Florida and with my family then I didn't care.

We had finished rearranging furniture and unpacking boxes, and we were all slumped in the living room. Mom and Aunt Jenna were sitting on one sofa with Carter. They both had a glass of red wine in hand. Libby was skulking upstairs in her room as per usual. Elena and Stefan were sitting on the other sofa, snuggled into each other, both gazing into each other's eyes romantically. Jeremy and I exchanged a look and a raised eyebrow before holding back our sniggers.. The scene of family bonding was broken by a knock on the door. Nobody moved. Looks like I was getting the door then. I groaned as I stood up.

"I'll get it" I said to nobody in particular.

I turned the key to unlock the door before pulling the door open. It was dark outside now and the porch was lit up by some little lights on either side of the doorway. The lights illuminated the man in front of me. He had thick black hair, the type that looks so soft to the touch that you just want to run your fingers through it. His eyes were so…_blue_. They were like an ocean. They had this mischievous glint to them, but at the same time they seemed to see into me, burn into me. He wore black jeans, a black button down shirt and a black leather jacket. Could he look more badass? He had this thing about him, this air, that just screamed bad boy… and dangerous? I felt myself blush as I took him in. He was gorgeous and I looked a mess. Not only was I not in the best of shape, but I was also wearing old, raggedy jeans and a faded blouse with spit up on the shoulder. What a great impression I was making.

"Can I help you?" I finally managed to ask.

The guy smirked at me and I felt butterflies swarm my stomach and my knees go weak.

"I'm the ever so handsome, irresistible, Damon Salvatore; I'm looking for my brother. Can I come in?" he charmed, flashing me a toothy smile.

My heart was beating so fast, I thought it was going to explode from my chest.

"Not full of himself at all" I muttered to myself then spoke up a little louder "Um, sure; come on in".

Damon beamed at me again and stepped into the house. I turned around to see Elena and Stefan behind me. Elena gave me a tight smile before glaring over my shoulder at Damon. Stefan did the same.

"Hello, brother" Damon grinned, revelling in their cold stares, "I was just in the neighbourhood when I thought 'why don't I go see Stefan'. And I've just been introducing myself to your lovely new friend here".

I blushed once more. He was a charmer for sure. My Mom walked into the room with a smile on her face.

"Hello, I'm Nicola Waters, lovely to meet you" my Mom greeted, giggling a little as the alcohol content of her nth glass of wine set in.

Damon raised an eyebrow at me but smiled charmingly at my Mom. I suppressed a giggle.

"Damon Salvatore" he announced as he kissed my Mom's hand. Very suave.

"Stefan's brother?" my Mom asked.

"The one and only. I'm the best brother but shhh, don't tell him" he mock whispered.

"Would you like to come through to the living room with us? We're having a family night and you're welcome to join" Mom invited.

My heart seemed to speed up even more and I felt the already blushed cheeks get redder. Part of me screamed for him to stay, but another part of me told me that I'd only make a fool of myself. Damon's eyes twinkled at me mischievously for a moment before he thanked my Mom and walked into the living room. I saw Stefan and Elena exchange a knowing look before following him back through. As the stupid part of me whooped and cheered, I followed them into the room and took my seat next to Jeremy. Damon sat down on the other side of me. My Mom retuned to talking to Aunt Jenna, while Jeremy went to make coffees in the kitchen. Elena and Stefan glared at Damon for a few moments before letting out collective sighs and returning to their previous eye gazing.

"Sickening isn't it?" Damon joked.

"Just a bit" I murmured.

"So…who are you?" he asked, doing this eye thing that made me melt inside.

"Piper Waters, I'm Elena's cousin"

"Piper? Strange name…suits you"

"Thanks…I think"

"How old are you Piper?"

"Seventeen, I'm going to be in Elena's year at school"

He opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by Libby standing in the doorway with a wailing Athena in her arms. Athena's face was scrunched up and red as she screeched. Libby looked livid. Libby was never like this with Athena, usually she mothered her enough for the both of us. She held Athena out towards me.

"She won't shut up!" Libby shouted "take her...I've got a killer headache and _your _screaming baby won't shut up!"

Damon looked at me funny…like I'd grown another head. I knew this would happen; people were freaked out by me and Athena. I just sighed and stood up. I took Athena from Libby and cradled her against my chest, rocking her gently.

"I'll be back soon" I mumbled to the room before rushing out and up the stairs.

I opened the door to my room, Athena still wailing. I paced the room, rocking her, shushing her, talking to her. But she wouldn't stop. I checked her diaper but she was clean. I sighed before reaching one –handed for my buttons.

"Do you want fed Thea? Hmmm…is that what you want?" I murmured.

I shrugged off my blouse and unclasped my front clasping bra. I eased Athena into position and let her suckle. At last she was quiet. All she seemed to do was feed; it was one of those baby things with her. I couldn't wait until she was constantly on bottles. After a few minutes she was still suckling. I was used to the feeling but it was a pain in the ass.

"Crap!" I heard cursed in the doorway.

I looked up, wide-eyed, to see Damon standing in the doorway.

"Oh god" I mumbled as I jumped up.

Damon covered his eyes with his hands as I awkwardly fastened my bra and pulled my shirt back on. I placed Athena back in her cot and thankfully she didn't squeal. Red-faced, I turned back to face Damon. He too looked embarrassed.

"Sorry" I muttered "I should have shut the door"

"No…I shouldn't have just walked in" he mumbled just as embarrassedly.

We stood in silence for a few moments, my heart pounding dramatically at the sight of him.

"Did you want something, Damon?" I asked quietly as I sat down on my bed cross-legged.

"I'm sorry" he uttered almost inaudibly. I laughed.

"What for?"

"For looking at you funny… it was just a shock… you don't seem the type to have a kid"

"That's what everyone says" I smile "then they see Thea and they think I'm some sort of whore. Don't worry about it Damon. I'm used to it."

His brow furrowed adorably.

"I don't think you're a whore" he mumbled. I laughed again.

"I'll take that as a compliment then"

"Um…we're all going now, I was just coming up to apologise. Maybe I'll see you around" Damon said as he stood up and walked towards the door.

"Yeah maybe" I nodded.

Damon walked out but a Moment later he peeked his head back around the door.

"Oh and Piper?" he grinned.

"What?"

"Nice rack" he winked with a suggestive wiggle of the eyebrows.


	3. Chapter 3

_A big thank you to everyone who added me to story/author alerts :D they give me a buzz everytime they pop up in my inbox lol And thankyou to my reviewers - they are really great thanks. SO thanks to "desiree monroe", "cdsnow", "xxdarkvampireangelxx" and "linkin4life". Ok so in a review i got it said that Damon is a bit ooc and i know he is and i'm trying to keep in as much character as i can and i think that that will show more in the coming chapters but i think that for me personally Damon has to be a little ooc in this fanfic just because of the other characters involved as well as the storyline. But this review really helped me to see what people are thinking of this story - as all of my reviews do. So thank you once again. Enough of me babbling, here is the 3rd chapter, enjoy and please review! _

_Rachel x _

Chapter 3 

I was exhausted after all the unpacking, so I took a quick shower, got changed into my pyjamas and changed Athena's diaper. I sang – out of tune I might add – a lullaby to my daughter before she finally fell asleep. I crossed the room to shut the curtains. I was about to pull the curtains closed when I jumped back in fright. I yelped loudly and fell backwards onto the bed. Sitting on the big oak tree branch outside my window, was a big, black crow. Its feathers were darker than anything I'd seen before and its eyes seemed…almost human. I reached for the window and yanked it closed. I pulled the curtains shut and climbed into my bed, tucking the duvet under my chin and snuggling into the soft mattress.

I couldn't sleep properly. I kept having nightmares about my dad. We were back in Florida and dad was storming towards me with a face so cold and dark. I cradled Athena to my chest and glared at my father.

"You can't take my baby" I had shrieked.

Dad had laughed, and pried her from my arms. I'd screamed and chased after him but no matter how hard I pushed myself or how fast I made myself go, it was never fast enough. Dad and a screaming Athena disappeared from sight.

"Athena!" I yelled with tears in my voice but she didn't come back to me.

I woke up panting and soaked through with a layer of sweat. I ran a hand through my rank, dirty hair. I rubbed my eyes and glanced around my room. I rushed towards the cot, I had to see her. Athena was still asleep, sleeping peacefully. I let out a sigh of relief. I glanced at the clock, 5:45am. There was no point going back to sleep. I'd have to get up in half an hour to get ready for school anyway.

The thought sent a shiver of fear down my spine. School. I hadn't been to school since I got pregnant. Dad banned it. Instead, I had to teach myself at home. I was always bright, when I was at school I was an 'A' student across the board; none of the teachers had a bad word to say about me. I spent my nine months of pregnancy learning the rest of the year's syllabus as well as the following year's too. It wasn't the thought of the work that scared me. It was the thought of the people. What if I wasn't liked? What if people hated me? What if nobody wanted to talk to me because I had a baby?

I pushed these thoughts to the back of my mind. I didn't want to worry about that now; there would be plenty of time for that later. Alternatively, I picked up the baby monitor and crossed the hallway to the bathroom. The good thing about being up so early was that I wouldn't have to fight Libby for the bathroom. I showered, scrubbing myself clean so bad that I left red marks all over my body. I washed my short blonde hair, and wrapped my self up in towels. I padded back across the landing and silently opened my wardrobe.

"What to wear? That is the question" I mumbled to myself.

I scrambled through my wardrobe, pushing past all of my sick-covered tops to find the new shirt Mom had bought me last week. I pulled on my underwear and my high-waisted skinny jeans before tucking in my shirt so that it hung nicely over the top. It had been so long since I cared about what I looked like. I stood in front of the mirror, twisting from left to right, backwards and forwards to look at myself from every angle. I pursed my lips and sucked in my belly. The jeans clung to my larger than liked bum and thighs. But what could I do? Nothing, that's what, so_ suck it up_ I told myself.

I took my own advice and got on with it. Being a mother, I had a tendency to pack for every eventuality, so, my school bag that should have only contained a few bits and pieces – I hadn't even been given my books yet – was packed to the point where it was spilling over. It was filled with everything you would ever need, and probably everything you wouldn't too.

It wasn't long before Athena woke up and was screaming for her feed and change. As I changed her diaper Libby clattered across the hallway to the bathroom with her hair like a bird's nest. I restrained from laughing. I took Athena down to the kitchen and warmed a bottle for her. I was trying to wean her off the real stuff; I was cutting her down to one proper feeding a day while the rest were from the bottle. The thought of breast feeding brought the memories of the night before back to my mind. Damon. The thought made my cheeks blush and my body feel all tingly…strange.

I heard heavy footfalls on the stairs followed by Mom and Carter entering the kitchen. Mom looked a little worse for wear, there were big bags under her eyes and she was rubbing her temples to ease a headache. Maybe she wouldn't hit the drink with Aunt Jenna again anytime soon…yeah, right. Carter was as hyper as ever, his blonde hair stuck messily all over his head. He rushed towards me and enveloped me in a big hug.

"What do you want for breakfast Carter?" I asked as I finished feeding Athena.

"Chocolate hoops" he enthused with a grin.

I strapped Athena into her chair before grabbing a bowl, some Chocolate hoops and some milk for Carter. Mom had slumped into a seat at the table with a steaming cup of coffee in hand. I checked my watch, I had five more minutes before Elena was due to pick Libby and I up for school. Mom sighed as the coffee hit her throat. She put the cup back down and smiled at me.

"You looking forward to being back at school?" Mom asked me.

I sat down in the seat opposite her and regarded her for a Moment. Back in Florida I didn't particularly enjoy High School, it wasn't that I hated it, but I didn't enjoy it either. But when I hadn't been in school I missed being around people my own age. It was always just me and Athena during the day. I loved Athena but I needed someone who could I actually have a conversation with.

"I think so" I replied after a moment of thinking.

"Nervous?" Mom guessed.

"Yeah" I admitted.

"Don't be, Mystic Falls High School will love you"

"Thanks Mom"

A horn sounded twice from out front. I rolled my eyes and leaned across to hug Mom goodbye. I turned to Athena and gave her a hug and a kiss. Guilt swarmed over me as I looked down at her. I was abandoning her…ok maybe I wasn't abandoning her, but that's what it felt like inside.

"Don't worry Piper, she'll be fine here with me. Go on, go to school, Elena won't wait forever" Mom laughed, reaching for my daughter.

I pressed another kiss to Athena's forehead.

"Mommy loves you Athena, be good for your grams" I murmured to her.

I picked up my bag and left the kitchen. Libby rushed down the stairs and walked next to me as we left the house. She gave me one of her rare smiles as we climbed into Elena's BMW. Elena was sitting in the front with one of her friends.

"Hey guys, this is Bonnie, Bonnie, this is Piper and Libby, my cousins from Florida" Elena smiled as she drove out of my street and towards Mystic Falls High School.

Bonnie turned in her seat to smile and give us a little wave. Bonnie had long black hair that waved down her back, and big almond shaped eyes. Libby smiled at her before plugging in her iPod. To make up for my sister's impoliteness, I gave her my hand and she shook it warmly.

Mystic Falls High School was a beautiful school, not like the one back in Florida. That had been all chain link fences and bag searches. This seemed to have a better atmosphere about it, an atmosphere more conducive to learning. It had a parking lot at the entrance followed by big, green, open spaces and a gravel drive. As we climbed out of the car, Elena turned to me.

Gesturing to the school behind her she said, "what do you think?".

"It's great, it's so like school but so unlike school. I think I must have forgot what school was like it's been so long since I've been in one" I laughed.

"I'm sure you'll love it" Elena grinned.

Almost out of nowhere, Stefan walked up to Elena and planted a kiss on her. I turned to Bonnie who gave me a knowing look and beckoned for me and Libby to follow her. We walked up the big, gravel drive, Bonnie stopping occasionally to say 'hello' to the people she knew. She took us to the main office where we were supposed to register.

"I'm sorry I can't stick around, but I've got to get to Algebra or Mr Flynn's gonna' kill me. I'll see you both at lunch, ok?" Bonnie smiled.

"Yeah, see you later" I replied before pushing open the office door.

The office was pretty big, with a small waiting area with comfy looking sofas at one end, and a big desk at the other. Behind the desk sat a kind looking woman with warm eyes and shoulder length red hair.

"Good morning" she greeted "can I help you?"

"We're new students here" I smiled.

"What are your names?"

"Piper and Olivia Waters"

The receptionist clicked away on the keyboard of the computer in front of her for a moment. She looked over her _Prada _glasses at the screen in front of her before smiling up at us.

"There you are" she murmured before clicking some more "I'll be right back".

She disappeared into a room behind the office for a few minutes.

"So?" I asked Libby "what do you think?"

Libby shrugged and gave me a small smile. We always got on better when we weren't in the house. It made her more relaxed, more willing to be apart of conversation.

"It seems ok" she sighed before fidgeting with the strap on her shoulder bag.

Libby glanced around nervously with wide, worried eyes at the swarms of people filing morosely into the building. I squeezed her arm reassuringly. She flashed me a grateful smile before returning to fidgeting with her bag strap. The receptionist returned with a stack of papers still warm from the printer. She separated them into two stacks and deftly stapled them. She handed one to each of us with a kind smile.

"Ok, that's your timetables, your maps, your book lists that you need to hand in at the library to receive your books and your subject lists. There are also health forms for your Mom to fill in" the receptionist beamed at us before ushering us out of the office.

"What lesson do you have?" Libby asked me nervously.

"Social studies with Ms Jenson, you?"

"Digital Art with Mrs Butler" she sighed.

"Hey" I said, drawing her attention, "don't worry about it, you'll be fine. If I'm not in any of your lessons this morning then I'll see you at lunch ok?"

"Ok" she mumbled.

"See you later" I smiled before getting my map and heading for my social studies classroom.

The school seemed to be larger on the inside than it did on the outside. There seemed to be classrooms everywhere. What would you expect in a school? I managed to find my Social studies classroom fairly easily and was welcomed warmly into the classroom by Ms Jenson. Thankfully, I wasn't completely alone in my first lesson. When I walked in I immediately spotted Stefan sitting on his own at the back of the class. Luckily for me, the only free seat was the one beside him. Ms Jenson sent me over and I sat down beside him. Once Ms Jenson set the work, Stefan began scribbling away, as did I, but we still managed to have a conversation.

"So how's your first day so far?" Stefan asked quietly.

"Not too bad… I've been up early this morning so I had time to prepare myself" I laughed.

"Nightmares?" Stefan joked.

I smiled tightly and looked down at my work without really seeing it. I felt the ashamed blush cover my cheeks. He sucked in a little breath and sighed, patting my arm awkwardly in an effort to comfort me.

"Oh I'm sorry, do you want to talk about it?" he murmured.

"Um, no thanks…I'm not really one for caring and sharing…but thanks for offering though" I smiled.

"Well I'm always here if you want to talk" Stefan mumbled.

Poor guy, he was dealing with a hormonal teenager…he was way out of his depth. I gave him my best reassuring smile before returning to my work. As much as I appreciated his kindness, there was no way I was going to open up to him about my nightmares. I didn't talk about things like that with anyone.

The rest of the morning seemed to fly by; after Social Studies, I had Food Science with Bonnie and one of her and Elena's friends Caroline. After that I had English with Elena. It was such a thrill to be a normal teenager again, to be one of the crowd, to be real. But, as I was enjoying the day to day ordinariness at school, I couldn't keep my mind from wandering back to Athena at home. I had never really been away from Athena before; my limit was usually an hour or two when Mom or Libby watched her for me when I went out to the shops. This was really testing me. There was a pain in my chest, a sort of pulling ache that kept urging me to go back to her, to hug her, to play with her. But I knew that I couldn't, I had to try and have some sort of a normal life, however small that may be.

At lunch I quickly visited the library and handed in my book list. The librarian was middle aged with glasses and curly hair. She took my list and gathered up the endless stream of books that I needed for my classes. I managed to squeeze most of the books into my bag but I still had to carry three. I made my way down to the cafeteria to see Elena waving at me, beckoning me to the table. The table was filled by people: Libby, Elena, Stefan, Bonnie, Caroline and two guys that I didn't know.

"Where did you disappear off to after English?" Elena asked me with a grin.

"Had to go collect my books" I told her with a wrinkle of my nose.

"I don't envy you there. Oh how rude of me, this is Matt and Tyler" Elena laughed.

I waved at the two guys before taking a seat between Bonnie and Stefan. I took my lunch out of my bag and began chomping on the cold pasta. I joined in the conversation between Caroline and Bonnie; they were talking about some upcoming dance at the school. Dancing wasn't really my thing but I'd go just to get the experience. I felt my phone buzz in my pocket and I pulled it out. It was a text from Mom. It read: _Just fed Thea her lunch now she's having her nap. Don't worry about anything, enjoy your day x_. I smiled and quickly sent her a thank you text. Conversation flowed well between the table until Caroline turned to me.

"Hey, Piper" she began, she bit her lip nervously, "is it true you have a baby?"

A sort of deathly silence fell over the table, if not most of the surrounding table. Elena and Libby narrowed their eyes at Caroline, Bonnie stared at her hands, Stefan smiled sympathetically at me, Tyler watched my face with wide, interested eyes and Matt elbowed Caroline.

"What was that for?" Caroline whined, rubbing the spot on her arm where Matt's elbow had collided with her.

"Don't be rude" he hissed.

"No, no it's fine" I assured him "yeah, I have a baby. A little girl, her name's Athena, Thea for short"

I retrieved my phone and scrolled through the photos for my favourite picture of Athena. It was a picture of her smiling up at the camera, she looked adorable.

"Here, this is her" I said, giving Caroline the phone.

The phone was passed around the table and everyone made little 'aww' sounds.

"She's adorable, how old is she?" Bonnie asked.

"Three months" I mumbled, glowing with pride.

Tyler spat his drink half way across the table, splattering Libby and Elena with soda. I was about to laugh but the looks on Elena and Libby's faces told me to think twice about it.

"You had a baby three months ago?" Tyler asked incredulously. His eyes were wide as he appraised me.

"Yeah" I said, confused.

"And you've still got that ass?" he remarked.

This time Matt elbowed Tyler in the side.

"What was that for?" he whined.

"For being a jerk" Bonnie said simply.

"But it was a compliment" Tyler insisted.

"Thank you… but can we please take the conversation away from my ass?"

Everyone laughed and I blushed a little. The conversation of Athena was over, at least for now. I had expected them to see me in a different light, for them to be disgusted by me. But they had taken it well. I didn't have to worry about them overreacting for now then, but just because they took it well didn't mean that everyone would. I probably shouldn't have been as relaxed about things as I was. I knew better than most that trouble was always around the corner.

The afternoon passed just as quickly as the morning had, I had triple Biology all afternoon with Libby, Matt, Tyler and Caroline. We sat together at the back of the class and had a good laugh; even Libby joined in. She sat on the outskirts of the group, but was soon brought into it by Tyler. She blushed beneath his stare and I could see how she was struggling not to be pulled in by his charm. Maybe she could finally put her trust in someone, maybe.


	4. Chapter 4

_Again, I'd like to thank those who reviewed/added me to story/author alerts. It is very much appreciated. Ok, so this is chapter 4! Please review! _

_Rachel x _

Chapter 4 

When lessons were over, Libby and I waited for Bonnie and Elena at the front of the school. We were chattering away when a familiar voice stopped all conversation.

"Hello Piper, looking as good as ever I see" Damon smirked and winking at me as he leant against the side of his car, which was parked right next to us.

"Hello Damon" I greeted courteously as I blushed deep red at the thought of the night before. This made him smirk some more.

"Can I offer you a ride?" he asked seductively. I swallowed unnecessarily.

"Elena's taking us home" Bonnie interrupted, glaring at Damon.

Why did they all do that? Did they all hate him? Was there something about him that I didn't know?

"I wasn't asking you w… Bonnie" he corrected himself. Bonnie's eyes narrowed to small, evil slits.

"Elena won't mind, and I was going to call in and see Jeremy anyway…it'll save Elena a trip" Libby announced, her eyes twinkling and a smirk playing on her lips.

I glared at Libby and sighed before turning back to Damon.

"Sure, that would be lovely Damon" I said.

Damon opened the door for me and I climbed in. Grinning, Libby waved at me as Damon drove off. I had to admit, the way Damon drove the car was pretty…enthralling. He smirked the entire time.

"So…how's Thea? Where is she today?" Damon asked me.

"She's fine… my Mom's looking after her until she finds a job, I couldn't exactly sneak her into school in my bag" I explained.

"What about when she gets a job?"

"Then she'll have to go to day-care… my Mom says that there is a good day-care here in Mystic Falls"

"Can't say I know much about Day-Care facilities, I don't usually hang there" he grinned.

"No…just around the local High School. You're going to get yourself a reputation Mr Salvatore" I laughed. He waggled his eyebrows at me again, making my heart rate speed up.

"Oh I've already got one Ms Waters"

We pulled up outside my house and we sat still in the car for a moment.

"Do you want to come inside?" I asked, cheeks flushing.

"Are you sure that's wise?" he asked with mock horror "Is the young mother Ms Piper Waters, inviting me into her home?"

I laughed at his expression. Why did everyone hate him? He seemed a nice person to me, ok, so he liked to make suggestive jokes and do that eye thing to me a lot. But he seemed ok.

"Yes I am inviting you in, so are you coming in or not?"

"Oh go on then"

We got out the car and walked up the drive. I opened the door to the sight of Carter and Mom playing on the Wii. I rolled my eyes, dumped my bag on the stairs and wandered through to the living room with Damon on my heels.

"Hey Mom" I greeted

"Hey sweetie how was school?" Mom replied as she paused the game.

"It was great, even Libby enjoyed it. This guy called Tyler is totally into her"

"I'm glad you're enjoying it honey, you've been so down in the dumps lately"

"I am Mom, where's Thea?"

"Upstairs in her crib" Mom informed me while checking her watch "she's had a nice nap so you can wake her up now".

I headed for the stairs and Damon followed me.

"My, my Ms Waters, taking a man up to your bedroom aren't you naughty?" Damon said playfully.

I smacked his arm before entering my room. Thea was just starting to wake up in her cot. I lifted her up and cradled her too me.

"Have you missed your Mommy? Yes you have. Oh, yes you have" I crooned softly as I sat down on my bed beside Damon.

Damon peered at Thea, a curious look in his eyes. I held her to me and breathed in her scent. I loved her baby scent, all talc and softness. It always smelt like…home. I smiled against her cheek. Damon's face was half way between curiosity and uncertainty.

"I can go…" he began. I shook my head and smiled at him.

"Nah, its fine; I'm just not used to being away from her for so long. Unless you're scared of us?"

I raised an eyebrow at Damon and he shrugged nonchalantly before making a 'phfft' noise at me.

"Hah!" he laughed "I'm not scared of anything, I've just never seen a baby up close in… a long time"

"Don't worry about it, I used to be a bit freaked out by babies…then I had one and I got over it" I explained.

"She's sort of…pretty" Damon mumbled, he even looked a little embarrassed at having an emotional response.

I smiled, "she's my beautiful baby".

"Just like her Mom" Damon whispered.

He was looking right at me, like he could see deep into my soul. I felt like I would surely melt beneath his stare. His eyes were like oceans, so deep and so beautiful. He leaned in slightly, as if he was going to…kiss me? But then he smiled softly and stood up.

"I better get going…Stefan will be wondering where I've got to" Damon said

"Oh, ok, well I'll see you around" I replied with a small smile.

He started walking out of my room but then turned on his heel to face me.

"Jenna's having a big 'family' barbeque tomorrow night after school finishes. I'll be gate-crashing…maybe I'll see you there?" he asked with a smirk playing on his lips.

"Maybe you will" I smirked back slyly.

"Bye Piper"

"Bye Damon".

He disappeared and I let out a long breath. My head felt funny, like I couldn't think properly. My thoughts seemed to swirl in my head _Damon, Damon, Damon_… constantly twirling around and around, over and over, never stopping. What was it about him that got me so hooked? Ok, so he was a bad boy and every girl found bad boys attractive… I'd gotten pregnant by one so I knew the lure. But when I'd looked at the pregnancy test in my hand showing positive I'd sworn that I wouldn't ever fall for another bad boy's charms ever again. _Well,_ I told myself, _you haven't fallen for him, you're just attracted to him_. I was going to have to try and keep it at that, because there was no way that I was going to humiliate myself again.

I was thankful that couldn't yet walk or crawl because it made things easier for me. I lay her down on her blankets on the middle of the bed and gave her, her favourite teddy to play with. While she was preoccupied and most importantly quiet, I pulled my books out of my school bag and got on with my homework. It had only been my first day but I'd already been given English and Biology homework. The Biology was a simple worksheet covering a subject matter that I'd taught myself a while ago yet it was still fresh in my mind as though I'd only learnt it yesterday. I flashed through the worksheet before turning to my English work. I groaned when I reread what I had to do. Write an essay about the social implications of Steinbeck's novel 'Of Mice and Men' in America during the late 30s and 40s. It wasn't that I didn't know what to write, in fact, the words were already forming in my head, but it was the time it was going to take to write. It was easy for me to fit in worksheets and mathematical problems, I could do those in a flash. But an essay took time and consideration. The consideration I had, it was the time that was the problem. _Better make a start_, I thought to myself wryly.

Half an hour, and three hundred and ninety words later, Athena decided she had had enough of just lying around and wanted to squeal instead. I rocked her and sang to her with no avail. _Can't I get a break? _I thought but immediately regretted it. This was my choice, it was my choice to have Athena, and I had to live with it. I could have terminated the pregnancy, had an abortion, but as soon as I knew for sure that I was pregnant I knew that I couldn't kill my unborn baby. I could have put her up for adoption, my dad had urged me to do so, and I had thought about, I had really considered it, but after hours of gruelling labour I was presented with a baby, my baby…and that was it, she was mine, forever; nobody was going to change that.

"Piper?" Mom called from downstairs "Elena's here"

I rolled off the bed where I'd been lying down with Athena on my chest and stood up. I stuck my feet into my slippers before descending the stairs. Elena and Caroline were standing at the bottom of the stairs waiting for me. Elena was wearing the new leather jacket that she'd told me about at lunch and was wearing her hair in tight curls. Caroline looked glamorous yet sweet in a flower print dress and pale pink cardigan. They both smiled at me and Athena.

"She's even cuter in person" Caroline smiled "can I hold her?"

"Sure" I replied.

I handed Athena to Caroline who surprisingly held her like a pro. She cooed and held onto Athena's hand, beaming smiles lighting up both of their faces. Elena rolled her eyes and winked at me.

"We were just on our way to the Grill; do you want to tag along?" Elena asked me.

"I'd love to, but I've been away from Athena all day and I would feel really guilty if I left her with my Mom again"

"Bring her with you…there isn't going to be many of us...it's supposed to be real quiet tonight anyway"

"I don't know…"

"Oh come on…if it's busy we'll go round to Caroline's, her Mom's working so it'll be all quiet, right Caroline?"

Looking up from Athena Caroline said "oh yeah sure".

"Ok" I finally agreed "let me just get changed and grab my bag"

"Oh, and bring Athena's buggy, we're walking" Elena called after me as I jogged up the stairs.

I didn't want to give Athena the chance to misbehave, so I quickly changed my top and put on my good boots. I grabbed Athena's bag and shoved my cell and my purse into it along with nappies, bottles, pacifiers and toys. I pulled a comb through my short blonde hair and quickly slapped a little lip-gloss onto my lips. When I got back downstairs Caroline and Elena were still fussing over Athena. I walked through to the kitchen to get Athena's buggy to see Libby at the table, smiling and texting away on her phone. As I opened the door of the cupboard where Athena's buggy was kept I decided to taunt her a little.

"So…" I grinned "what's got you so cheery?"

Libby blushed crimson but still managed to pull the smile off her face and glare at me.

"Not any of your business" she replied snarkily.

"Well if it's a boy…"

"Leave me alone Piper" she hissed menacingly. I couldn't help the little giggle that slipped through my lips.

"Elena, Caroline and I are going out do you fancy coming?" I asked her.

"No thanks…I'm…um…busy" Libby stammered flushing a embarrassed crimson.

I could always tell when Libby was lying; maybe it was a twin thing or maybe she was just a bad liar, but either way I could still tell. And right now, Libby was lying. Her eyes were almost pleading with me not to call her up on it. I sighed; I was a sucker for the puppy dog eyes. I nodded at her before grabbing the buggy.

Back in the hallway, Elena and Caroline were playing peek-a-boo with Athena. It was nice that Elena and Caroline didn't mind me having a baby; it was nice that they accepted me with Athena.

"Are you ready?" I asked.

"Yep, let's go" Caroline grinned.

I strapped Athena into her buggy, said goodbye to my Mom and Carter and left the house. We walked up the street, me pushing the buggy, Caroline jabbering on about how my hair would look very 'hot mama' if I curled it; she'd laughed so hard at the joke in that. Elena had snickered a little too before getting her cell out to text Stefan. We talked for the fifteen minutes it took to walk to the Grill.

When we got to the Grill I was a little hesitant about taking Athena inside. What if it was too noisy for her? What if she decided to through a tantrum? What if…? There were so many what ifs in my life, too many to count. I just had to grab the bull by the horns and do it. Caroline held the door open for me as I pushed the buggy inside. Elena walked in next followed by Caroline. It was pretty busy but not overly so. At the back of the Grill, where there was a pool table surrounded by tables, was Bonnie waving madly at us to get our attention. With Bonnie were Stefan, Matt and a few other people that I vaguely recognised from school.

Caroline insisted that she sat at the end of the table with Athena's buggy so she could keep her occupied for me. I'd smiled gratefully and turned to talk to Bonnie. When I looked back I saw her pulling faces at Athena and Matt watching her with a slightly confused, scared and awestruck expression. I chuckled to myself and carried on sipping my lemonade.

After an hour or so, Athena started getting grizzly and Caroline started to panic. She flapped her arms uselessly at her sides before turning to me with a manic, helpless expression.

"What do I do?" she begged me.

"She's probably just hungry" I laughed.

"Do you have a bottle?"

"I have a three month old baby, of course I have a bottle with me" I said sarcastically.

She narrowed her eyes playfully at me before extending her hand one quick sweep, holding it in front of me. I reached into my bag and pulled out a bottle that thankfully was still warm. I placed it in her hand and she grinned at me. I caught Matt's astonished eye and I had to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing. She lifted Athena carefully out of the buggy and held her gently. She lifted the bottle to Athena's lips and let out a surprised squeak when she started suckling immediately. Matt came to sit next to Caroline with an adoring look in his eye, he wrapped an arm around her waist and she leant into his embrace. It was sweet; they looked like a little family, like a loving family. Except that was _my_ baby, and _I_ should have been the one with a man looking adoringly down upon me. Instead I was a single Mom, no man to speak of, no daddy for my little girl, I didn't have a little family like that.

I felt the tears welling in my eyes as I watched them and a lump began to form in my throat. On wobbly legs, I stood up.

"I'll be right back" I told Caroline, my voice wavering slightly.

"Um, ok" she replied, giving me a funny look.

Quickly, I stumbled through the tables and the people milling around. I pushed open the door that led to the parking lot. I sucked in a ragged breath of fresh air. The cool night air made the tears on my cheeks feel icy against my skin. I stumbled along the wall for a metre or so before sinking to the floor, tears running down my face.

"What's up with you Mommy dearest?" a mocking voice said from nowhere.

I glanced around nervously to see Damon, looking as dashing as ever, right beside me. He smiled sympathetically at me before slumping down next to me.

"So…" he began "what's up?"

"It doesn't matter" I grumbled.

"Well you're clearly upset, so I would hazard a guess that it does matter"

"It's stupid" I whispered.

"These things usually are" he smirked. I smacked his arm and he shot me a mock look of pain.

We sat quietly for a moment before he turned to me, frowning, the way his forehead creased with the movement made my insides go all fuzzy.

"Where's Thea?" he asked, he actually looked a little worried.

"Inside, I left her with Caroline"

"You left your _baby_ with _Caroline_?" he asked with horror.

"Yeah…."

"Caroline Forbes, self absorbed Caroline Forbes, ditzy Caroline Forbes" he said, his eyes wide as he tried to comprehend my reasoning.

"Hey! She's not that bad, and Matt and Elena and Bonnie are with her too. Caroline just happens to be holding her for me" I defended.

"Oh, ok. So what's got you all emotional, leaving you sitting outside the Grill where any lowlife could kidnap you?"

"I'd like to see them try; I'll have you know that before I got pregnant I attended not only a self defence class twice a week, but also a boxing class too. So you know I could take you down any time I wanted…"

"Me and you on the floor…not so bad an idea. But you're still avoiding the question…" Damon sang lightly. I sighed and narrowed my eyes at him.

"Caroline was holding Thea, and Matt was holding Caroline" I explained in a whisper "the way they looked at each other, it was so heartfelt, so loving. And with Thea there, it looked just like a little family. And I realised, I don't have that…that I'm not going to have that…like ever"

"That's stupid" Damon scoffed "that is utter crap! So what if Blondie and busboy are all loved up? So what if they look like a cute little family right out of a movie? That baby in there that they're holding isn't theirs! She's yours, you're her Mom, and you're her family! Piper, you're certainly not going to never have that! Does that make sense? No it doesn't? You know what you need?"

"What?" I grumbled as he stood up and pulled me to my feet with him.

"To get out of here" he said simply, grinning at me.

I had a hard time fighting the grin that wanted to pull its way onto my face at the sight of the grin on his. It was like he was infectious; his mood was your mood. And he had a great grin; the type of grin that made your stomach flip and your heart feel like it was going to pop out of your mouth.

"Excuse me?" I asked, blinking at him.

"Come on, I'm taking you home" he said.

He began dragging me back towards the down that led inside the Grill. I planted my feet on the floor and yanked my hand from his. He turned around to face me with a confused look; I narrowed my eyes at him.

"I barely know you" I stated incredulously "and you expect me to come with you, not only me but my daughter as well"

He rolled his eyes at me like I was crazy.

"Um, yeah" he said slowly as if speaking to a child.

"You could be a serial killer for all I know!"

He sighed and rolled his eyes again, he exhaled a slow breath.

"Fine I promise I won't kill you" he said with another exaggerated facial expression, he raised a hand over head in the Scout's honour sign.

"Oh come on then" I sighed reluctantly, he rewarded me with another grin.

Damon held the door open for me and we walked back inside. Matt and Caroline were still holding Athena but had finished feeding her, her bottle. At first everyone at the table smiled at me but then they saw Damon. Tyler didn't have a reaction, but the rest did. They were all glaring up at Damon, though Elena and Stefan's weren't as strong as the others.

"Hello…crew" Damon said to the group, raising his eyebrows and smouldering his eyes at everyone.

"What are you doing here Damon?" Bonnie asked, her voice seemed so cold when she spoke to him.

"Yeah, no-one wants you here" Caroline hissed menacingly causing Athena to squirm and grizzle in her arms.

"Hey can you guys stop bickering for two seconds while I take my daughter?" I asked, waving my arms around to get attention.

I took Athena from Caroline and strapped her back in her buggy. She smiled up at me lovingly. My heart swelled a little at the sight. I turned back to the others.

"I'm going to get out of here ok? It's getting a little noisy. I'll see you at school tomorrow" I said.

I grabbed the handles of the buggy and pushed it away from the table. Damon turned on his heel and followed me. As we left the Grill and walked into the parking lot I heard clicking heels behind me.

"Piper, wait!" Bonnie called after me.

"Bonnie leave it!" I heard Elena shout afterwards.

Damon and I turned around to see Bonnie storming towards us, and Elena running after her looking a little wary.

"Yes Bonnie?" I asked, exasperated.

"Don't go with him" she said a little breathlessly.

"Excuse me?" I demanded.

I didn't like being told what to do, not by anyone. I glared at Bonnie. Elena pulled on Bonnie's arm, trying to lead her away.

"He's dangerous, Piper. If you think he likes you then you're wrong. Damon doesn't like anyone. He will hurt you, I promise he will. I've seen him hurt too many people before. Don't trust him, and don't go with him. Please" Bonnie begged.

I glanced at Damon, who was glaring at the floor. He looked up and caught my eye, he looked pained.

"I think I can decide these things for myself Bonnie, thank you for your concern. We'll be leaving now" I said politely.

I tried to keep an air of calm around me but on the inside I wanted to grab her and give her a good, hard slap. Yes, I know, violence isn't a good thing. I began pushing Athena's buggy away and Damon walked silently beside me.

"Damon, wait!" Elena shouted after us but we didn't stop "don't hurt her, I'm trusting you on this, ok? Don't let me down, don't hurt her".

Damon turned around to face Elena, a ghost of a smile on his face.

"Don't worry Elena" he assured her before turning back around and walking next to me.

We walked in silence for a few minutes. I listened to the sounds around me, the sound of tyres on the road, of birds scuffling in the bushes, the wheels of the buggy turning on the asphalt. Damon walked with his hands tucked in his jean pockets, a frown permanently edged on his face.

"Keep frowning like that and you'll soon like a brooding forehead like your brother" I informed him "I don't think you could pull it off"

"Oh, is that so" he asked; smiling at me, the frown disappearing.

"That's better" I grinned "it's a much better look"

"I would say that you look great now, which you do, but I have to say I've seen you look much better. Even in fifty years time I'll not forget the time I walked into your room to see…"

"Oi!" I said, glaring at him "how about we make a pact never to talk about that, ok?"

"Nah, I quite like talking about it"

I let out a frustrated groan, leading him to widen his grin. I rolled my eyes and shook my head, cheeks flushing pink.

"I'm sorry" I said after a while, still walking but turning to look at him.

"What have you got to apologise for?" Damon said with confusion evident in his tone.

"I shouldn't have snapped at you earlier, I shouldn't have said that you'd murder me…or Athena. That's just stupid. I was just being stupid. The thing is…I don't do trust…not since…I just don't do trust. I get that you're just trying to be nice to me, I really do. And it's not that you look particularly like a serial killer, although I could sort of imagine it, it's just that I can't trust you yet, not fully. It's not you, it's me. God I sound like I'm breaking up with you when we're not even going out. It's just that this is my problem, not yours. So I'm sorry for snapping" I apologised in one big gasp.

"I get it" he nodded "I'm the same. Trust isn't easy for me either, but sometimes you've just got to jump in there and do it, you know?"

"Grab the bull by the horns" I whispered, remembering what I'd told myself earlier that evening.

"Yeah, that's my point"

I hadn't realised that we'd stopped outside my house. I glanced back to see the garden lit up by the porch light. I sighed.

"Thank you, Damon, for listening to me, and helping me. It means a lot" I thanked him gratefully.

"Not a problem" he smiled.

I leaned forwards, not really aware of what I was doing and pecked him on the cheek. My lips tingled as if they had been subject to an electric shock. We both staggered back a step, his eyes searching mine.

"Goodnight Damon" I mumbled.

I turned around, pushing the buggy up the path. When I closed the door behind me, I rested my head against its coolness. What was I getting myself into?


	5. Chapter 5

_Thanks for the continueing support of me and this fanfic. I really enjoy writing this story so here's the next chapter for you. Please review! _

Chapter 5 

I didn't get much sleep that night; Athena had been up most of the night crying. Every time I managed to get her to sleep and then drop off myself, she'd wake back up again. I sat in the kitchen guzzling a hot chocolate and chocolate biscuits to try and wake myself up. I was dying for a nice, hot cup of coffee, oozing with caffeine to wake me up, but because I was still breastfeeding Athena on a night I couldn't have the caffeine. I grumbled miserably under my breath as I caught sight of myself in a mirror. My eyes were bloodshot from sleep deprivation and under them were big black circles. Mom smiled at me as she walked into the room, dressed in a crisp black suit. She smiled once more and whipped out a concealer stick from behind her back.

"Thank you" I said gratefully "I was about to go to school looking like the night of the living dead"

"Your welcome" she replied before scooping Athena up from her high chair and holding her a safe distance from her fancy suit.

"What's with the suit?" I asked as I dabbed the concealer onto my face.

"I've got myself a job interview, and don't worry your Aunt Jenna's looking after Athena this morning before she goes to work"

"I wasn't worried Mom; I know you're doing me a big favour by looking after Athena for me while I'm back at school. You know I'm grateful, right?"

"Of course I do, and you know I don't mind looking after Athena, you know that, I'd love to be able to stay home and look after her everyday for you but if I don't get a job then we're not going to be able to feed her!" Mom explained.

"I know that" I smiled "what job are you interviewing for?"

Mom paused before answering "they've got a scheme there...it's a program that can help people like me become midwives, you work there as a receptionist or something like that part time, and the rest of the time you attend classes, observe the staff there and study like mad. They do it pretty cheaply and you still get paid for the part time work you do"

"I think that's a really good opportunity for you Mom" I enthused.

"Really?" Mom asked, biting her bottom lip.

"Yes, really!" I laughed "now I've got to go to school but I'll see you later ok? Good luck!"

The morning passed fairly quickly that day. When I'd first arrived at school with Elena, Jeremy and Libby, Caroline rushed over to me with a frown etched onto her forehead. She grabbed my arm and pulled me away from the others. She looked me straight in the eye.

"Are you ok, Piper? I mean, are you really ok? I know I'm self-centred but I do notice these things, you know? Yesterday, at the Grill, you seemed to get so upset. Was it me? Did I upset you? Really, if it was, I didn't mean it, sometimes I don't think before I do things…" she had said.

"No Caroline" I interrupted "it wasn't you, I'm still a bit hormonal these days, you know? Little things just set me off. Honestly, it wasn't you."

"Are you sure Piper?"

"Yes I'm sure. It was just my hormones going crazy, I promise"

"Ok, but if you ever want to talk I'm here for you"

"Thanks Caroline, that means a lot to me"

Caroline had grinned at me once more before rushing away, her blue scarf blowing in the soft breeze.

So now we were all walking towards our afternoon lessons, I had triple History with Bonnie, Stefan and Elena. It was a lesson I was looking forward to, I was always a whiz at history and I'd had more than enough time to research more than double the amount of topics on the syllabus while I was studying at home. On our way, I'd been informed that my history teacher was informally dating Aunt Jenna, which was going to be a tad awkward.

We walked across campus till we reached the Humanities building. Caroline, Tyler and Matt left us to go to their Geography lesson while we walked the corridors to History. My teacher was waiting at the door to greet his students.

"You must be Piper Waters, right? Jenna's niece? I'm your new History teacher, Alaric Saltzman"

"That's me" I smiled "it's nice to meet you Mr Saltzman".

"If you could take a seat on the second row that would be great" he said with a smile.

I took my seat and listened to Mr Saltzman greeting the rest of the class. Stefan and Elena sat next to each other at the back of the class, while Bonnie sat in the row behind me. I took out my pen so I could make some notes.

"Today, we're starting something new" Mr Saltzman announced, clicking the lid off his whiteboard pen "we're going to learn about the Vietnam War" .

Mr Saltzman crossed the room in long strides to reach the whiteboard. He scribbled the words 'Vietnam War' onto the board in messy scrawl before drawing a big circle around it. He smiled a toothy smile at the class.

"So let's begin…" he grinned before pointing to each and every student in the class, making us give him facts and things that we knew about the war.

I was surprised by how quickly History class passed, it was interesting and engaging. I didn't think I would enjoy learning about the Vietnam war as much as I did, when I was learning about it by myself at home I'd found the book work pretty tedious, but learning about it in a school environment with a teacher clearly passionate about History made it seem so important and…real to me. When the bell rang I piled my books into my bag and tucked my hair behind my ears.

I walked with Elena and Stefan to the parking lot and waited a few moments while they said their icky goodbyes. I averted my eyes and waited patiently. When they finally stopped lip-locking, and Stefan was on his way, Elena turned to me and smiled guiltily.

"Sorry" she mumbled, her face flushing a little.

"It's fine" I sighed, even though I wasn't particularly thrilled to have been present to see _that_.

We got into Elena's car and we waited for Libby to arrive. She ran across the parking lot and almost threw herself onto the back seat. I stared at her questioningly but she simply shrugged and stared out of the window the whole way home. It was funny how I was already thinking of this as home. Even though I'd lived my entire life in Florida, I felt more at home in Mystic Falls than I ever had in Florida. Even though I had only lived in Mystic Falls a few days, it felt like I was a part of the town…and it felt like the town was a part of me.

"Ok, so I'll see you in about an hour?" Elena checked as I gathered my belongings and made to get out of the car.

"Yep, Libby and I just need to get changed and then we'll come round to your place" I smiled.

"See you seen" she grinned as we climbed out of the car and she drove away.

Libby and I walked up the drive and into the house. Mom was in the living room, dressed in a summer dress and sunglasses waiting for us, she had Athena already in her buggy and the baby bag was wrapped around the handles. Carter was playing on the floor with his train set. Mom grinned at me.

"Go get ready" she smiled "then we'll go enjoy the barbeque"

I jogged up the stairs and into my room, shutting the door behind me. I crossed the room to my wardrobe and stood in front of it with a frown. _What to wear?_ I mused. It was only a family barbeque, but Damon said he was going to be there. And I wanted to impress him, or at least look half-decent. It was hot out so I grabbed a pair of denim shorts and a tank top that would go with my sandals. I couldn't be bothered with applying a whole load of make-up, the heat outside would surely melt it off of my face anyway. I scrunched my hair a little a swatted a bit of mascara onto my lashes before rushing down the stairs to hold my baby.

"How's she been today?" I asked Mom as we waited for Libby.

"Well she was well behaved for your Aunt Jenna this morning, they went to the park. After my interview we went to the store and grabbed some lunch at the Grill. Everyone was gushing over her" Mom smiled "then we did some laundry before having a nice nap this afternoon".

"I'm jealous!" I joked "it sounds too good to be true! How did the interview go?"

"I was offered a place on the scheme. Although I haven't been in full time employment for a while, they said I was a good candidate for the course. And then when I told them that I'd delivered Athena in an elevator they were amazed by my 'real life' experience 'in the field'" she laughed.

"That's great Mom, I'm so happy for you" I enthused, hugging her.

"I'm glad you think so Piper, I don't know if I'm cut out for it or not" Mom confided.

Her brown eyes were going wide and childlike, looking for some sort of reassurance from me. I leaned back from her, holding her at arms length and looking right at her, like she'd done to me so many times in the past.

"Mom, you'll be great at this job! You're clever, caring, and good with people and babies. Like they said, you've got first hand experience! You should take the offer, do something you want to do" I implored.

"Thanks Piper, I'll phone the scheme manager tomorrow and take her up on her offer"

I squeezed Mom's hand reassuringly before slouching onto the couch to wait for Libby. We waited another ten minutes before Libby finally thundered down the stairs. She was dressed in green Capri pants and a matching scoop necked t-shirt. She didn't say anything but beckoned towards the door with her hand. I rolled my eyes at my Mom and we both stood up. I strapped Athena back into her buggy before we left the house. Mom locked the door and we walked up the drive.

Elena and Jeremy's – and I guess Aunt Jenna's as well– house wasn't very far away. Only five minutes if you were walking at an average speed. I couldn't really understand why she felt the need to drive to school everyday if it was only a short walk for her. I pushed Athena's buggy along the sidewalk, occasionally an old woman would stop to coo over her, or someone on the opposite side of the sidewalk would give us funny looks but other than that it was a pretty quiet journey.

The house was impressive; it was big and had clearly been there for quite some time. As we walked up the drive way I could hear laughter, talking and music coming from the back garden. Mom knocked on the door and waited patiently, Carter bounced happily beside her. Aunt Jenna opened the door to greet us, with a big glass of white wine in one hand and a half eaten bar of chocolate in the other.

"Come on through" she grinned "the party's just starting".

Aunt Jenna let out a laugh as we all traipsed through. I unbuckled Athena from her buggy and carried her through the open doors that led to the back garden. The garden was big, with half of it grass and the other half paving stone. On the patio was a barbeque with food sizzling away on it, and there were a bunch of chairs and tables dotted around all over the place. An iPod was playing background music in its dock. Alaric Saltzman was behind the barbeque, flipping burgers and enjoying the atmosphere of the 'family' barbeque. Elena was sitting beside Caroline, Stefan and Bonnie, chattering away as they ate sweets and chocolate. Jeremy was sitting on the opposite side of the patio with Tyler and Matt. It seemed as if this 'family' event wasn't really just about family anymore. Mom and Aunt Jenna sat down beside the barbeque. I could hear Mom telling Jenna about her offer for the Midwifery scheme at the hospital. Libby took Carter over to sit with Tyler, Jeremy and Matt. Her cheeks looked a little flushed and her eyes were sparkling as she took a seat next to Tyler. I stood awkwardly in the middle of the patio with Athena in my arms, unsure of where I was supposed to be.

"Tough choice, isn't it?" a sarcastic voice said from behind me, I whipped around to see Damon smirking at me and doing the kooky eye thing.

"Hardest I've ever had to make" I smiled.

Immediately I felt better, like I was suddenly safer with him there. Subconciossly I sat down at one of the tables and Damon sat beside me, he shuffled his chair closer so that we were almost touching. I saw a look pass between him and his brother, it was as if they were sharing something, a secret. The look passed but Stefan kept sneaking glances at me and frowning, while Damon refused to look across at the other tables.

"You managed to crash the party I see" I said with a grin.

"Did you ever doubt me?" he questioned rhetorically with mock seriousness "its not like I'd leave you here to fend for yourself"

"Well if Caroline turns into a banshee or Tyler goes rabid then I'm sure you would save me" I laughed.

"You never know, it could happen" he grinned, he laughed but he seemed to be laughing more at an inside joke rather than our own.

"Yeah, course Damon"

"How was your day?"

"It was good, I like being back in school. It's strange, being kept to certain restrictions and deadlines and such. But I like it. I've spent too long teaching myself, its good to be back in the real world" I explained honestly.

"You were home schooled?"

"No…well yes technically… but I taught myself"

Damon looked at me confused, reading my face for some unknown knowledge or answer.

"Why? Why didn't you just go to school?"

"Um well…my Dad banned me from school…when I got pregnant" I mumbled, blushing with shame.

"He _banned _you from school?"

"Yep; he said it brought shame to the family"

Damon sighed and shook his head, he met my eyes and my heart rate increased a little, as did my mood.

"Where is your dad now?" Damon asked.

I tensed up, my shoulders going tight and my jaw clenching, the only thing that stopped me from punching the wall was Athena who was breathing softly against my chest. Damon seemed to realise that he'd said the wrong thing. He too tensed in his seat. He took my hand in his and smoothed his thumb over the knuckles, calming me and sending soft tingles through my body.

"My dad… left us… for a fitness instructor called Mandy. The last I heard she was moving to Florida to live with him" I whispered, barely audible.

Why was I confessing all of this? Why was I confessing all of this to Damon? I sniffed, determined not to cry. I wouldn't cry. I wouldn't cry in front of him. But even as I thought this I could feel the lump in my throat and my eyes were pooling with tears. Why was it that whenever I was around Damon he made me confront the things I didn't want to confront? Why was it that he made me feel like the world was balancing precariously on my shoulder and he was the only one who could steady it?

"His loss, if he was too stupid to see that he was missing out on you and Libby and Carter, then screw him. He isn't worth it. Trust me, my father…well he wasn't the best of fathers" Damon told me quietly.

I saw Stefan's head snap up, as if he could hear every word we were saying, even though we were speaking in hushed voices at the other end of the patio. He whispered something to Elena and they both glanced between Damon and I. They looked worried, the way Elena looked at me made me feel like she was anticipating a nervous breakdown. She hovered in a chair, not sure whether to come over or not.

"Food's ready!" Alaric called proudly.

I smiled and stood up to go get food. Damon followed. Elena nonchalantly walked my way and murmured so that only I could hear.

"Are you ok, Piper?" she asked.

"I'm fine Elena. We were just talking about some things that got me a little bit emotional, thanks for the concern though" I explained in the same hushed tones as she used.

Relief flitted across her face and she squeezed my hand gently before rushing back to Stefan. Damon was already loading up his plate of food when he caught my eye. He picked up another plate and began piling it up with food. He grinned at me and beckoned for me to sit back down. Mom brought Athena's buggy through to the garden for me and I placed her inside gently so that I could eat my food with two hands.

"I'm not usually one for 'family' barbeques" Damon said between mouthfuls "I'm more the drunk in my living room kind of guy than the whole happy families type, you know? But I have to admit, that I'm quite enjoying this one"

"Must be the company" I grinned.

"Well Caroline is a lovely girl…" Damon trailed off as I slapped his arm.

He smiled at me and I smiled back. His blue eyes twinkled and captivated me. It was some sort of silent communication. His stare made me feel almost woozy, but in a good way. The way he was affecting me was too much. I shook my head and before I knew what I was saying I was talking.

"Damon…" I began.

"Piper!" Caroline called.

Caroline rushed across the patio and grabbed my hand, pulling me up from my seat. She dragged me into the middle of the patio where everyone was dancing to some old eighties music. Caroline grabbed my other hand and started dancing, pulling me around with her. I laughed as she shimmied her hips and sang along to the music. I caught Damon's eyes and he grinned at me, leaning back in his chair and enjoying the show. I laughed some more. I danced with her, banging my hips against hers in some sort of rhythm. Libby was standing on the outskirts biting her bottom lip.

"Libby, come dance with us!" I called over to her.

She shook her head nervously. I sighed and dragged Caroline over to her. We both took a hold of one of Libby's hands and pulled her onto the make-shift dance floor with us. At first she didn't move, except for when we tugged at her arms. But then as almost everyone was dancing she began swaying to the beat and singing in time with Caroline's wails. I dropped their hands and walked towards Damon and a grin tugged at my lips. I smirked mischievously at him. I outstretched a hand and realisation flashed in his eyes. He shook his head.

"I don't dance when I'm this sober" Damon pointed out.

"I've seen you throw back at least three beers" I whined "come dance with me"

"No way"

"Dance with me Damon. Dance with me"

He caught my eye again and that connection, that fire, burned through me once more. I had to concentrate to stop myself from crumbling. He groaned and stood up, popping the joints in his legs, elbows and wrists. He grasped my hand and pulled me into the group of dancing bodies. One hand went to my waist while the other held my hand. He began moving to the music, pulling me against him and dancing. I giggled like everyone else and really got into it, revelling in the closeness of our bodies and the atmosphere that filled the patio. His hand skimmed down from my waist to my hips and once it was there his other hand left mine and landed on my other hip. He leaned in towards me, to kiss me. I could see it in his eyes. The song stopped and everyone began packing up as Jenna told everyone it was time to go, that she had an early start in the morning and that we did too. But he was still leaning towards me, still going to kiss me.

"Come on Piper, let's go" Mom said from beside me.

She had Athena's buggy and was beckoning for me to follow. I stepped back from Damon, brimming with disappointment. He stepped back too and cleared his throat.

"I'll see you around" I smiled "bye Damon"

I walked after Mom as she walked through the house. But then I stopped and turned around. I had to do this and I had to do it now. Now, when I still had the courage to do so. Now, before I could talk myself out of it. I rushed back onto the patio where Damon was still standing. I rushed towards him, placed a hand on his muscled chest. I leaned in and kissed him. And he kissed me back, meaningful, passion filled and hard. I ran my fingers through his hair and smiled against his mouth.

"I've got to go Damon" I whispered "but I _will_ be seeing you soon"

I stepped back and rushed back to my Mom and Athena, a little flushed and a smile as wide as a Cheshire cat's on my face.


	6. Chapter 6

_So chapter 6 is up! Thank you for your reviews and for adding me to story alerts, its much appreciated :) Please read and review!_

Chapter 6 

I'd kissed him, I'd kissed Damon. That was the thought that plagued my mind whenever I was awake, that was the thought that haunted my dreams whenever I slept. It may seem stupid; most would think that I would be happy I'd done it. That instead of it plaguing and haunting me, that it would remind me of something good. And at first it did, for the first day or two at least. But as the rest of the week passed by, and another week after that, and Damon had made no move to see me, it started to turn sour. Had I misinterpreted him? Had he simply not been interested in me at all? Had he been not liked me at all? Was he now avoiding me so that he could get away?

For two weeks I'd pretended like everything was ok. I put on an act for everyone around me. I'd done it again; I'd fallen for the bad boy, the dangerous guy. And that guy had hurt me, just like last time.

"Ok" Libby said, her hands resting on her hips and her lips pressed into a tight line, "you've moped around the house long enough Piper, enough is enough"

"What do you mean?" I hedged.

"Do you think we're stupid? So you kissed Damon and he's been avoiding you ever since? Ok, so what. You need to show him that you're not bothered, that he's no big deal! Now, we're going out and then, you're going to stop being so depressed because he's not worth it!"

"No Libby, I'm not in the mood to go out and act like everything's ok"

She pursed her lips and glared at me.

"I don't care, come on, get your coat, we're going out and that's the end of it!" Libby ordered and I could tell by the tone of her voice that she meant business.

"Urgh" I groaned "what about Athena?"

"She's with Caroline" Libby shrugged.

"You took my daughter to Caroline's without asking me"

"Don't act all high and mighty! I'm doing this for you!"

"Urgh" I groaned before being pulled out of my seat.

Libby dragged me up the stairs, throwing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt at me. I caught the clothes as they flew through the air. Begrudgingly, I pulled on the clothes that she gave me. She reached for my phone and pushed it into her pocket.

"Right let's go" Libby grinned.

We left the room, and Libby clattered down the stairs. I trudged down the stairs behind her and followed her out of the front door.

"Have fun!" Mom called as the door slammed shut.

"Oh yeah" I grumbled, knowing fine well that she couldn't hear me.

"Where are we going?" I snapped as we walked down the street.

"Just for a walk, jeez Piper, calm down!"

"Fine" I muttered, speeding up to match Libby's pace.

Once out of the street, Libby led me away in the opposite direction from the main part of town. Instead, she led me towards the graveyard, where my Aunt Miranda and Uncle Grayson were buried, along with my Grandma Silvia. She didn't take the conventional route, down the path; she went through the birch trees, pushing the leaves and branches aside. As we walked through the trees, Libby started talking.

"We haven't been here in a long time" Libby sighed "not even for the funeral".

"Too long" I agreed.

"We should have been here for Elena and Jeremy"

"Dad wouldn't let us, what could we do?"  
"We're here now though. That must count for something right?" Libby asked me as we reached Miranda and Grayson's graves.

"Of course it does" I sighed slumping down into the grass bordering their graves "I'm sure they appreciate it, wherever they are"

Libby ran her fingers over the engraved letters, just like she did whenever she felt something was important. Libby had this teddy at home; she had been given it by some long forgotten relative when we were born. Mom couldn't remember what I'd been given. But Libby had really loved this teddy bear. She carted it everywhere, and I mean everywhere, he would even come to the toilet with her. I guess it was her security blanket, something that made her feel safe, even from an early age. Although over the years she'd become less dependent on "Sylvester", yes she named it Sylvester, but even now she kept it on her bed at all times. The point of this, I think, is that Libby always prided herself on these important things, just like these graves. Weird thoughts, I know.

Libby sat down next to me, pulling her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on them. We sat quietly for a moment before she turned to face me.

"I like it here, I didn't think I would, but I do" Libby admitted, a little nervous blush covering her cheeks "can we stay here, Piper? Please, can we stay?"

She gripped my hands in hers and pleaded with me, her eyes going all Bambi on me.

"Why would we leave?" I asked, confused "Mom's starting her course next week, you're happy at school, we've got a nice house, we're close to Aunt Jenna, Elena and Jeremy. What could be better? Why would we leave?"

Libby sighed.

"You" she whispered.

"What do you mean?"

What was Libby going on about? Why would I make us leave? As far as I was aware we were staying here for the foreseeable future.

"You don't like it here Piper, it's obvious! When we first came here it was great! I really looked up to you, for courage. You went to school and made friends, you didn't keep Athena a secret, you were brave! You met Damon and were brave about that. And now? You're running away like a coward, hiding! You are clearly unhappy here now" Libby told me vehemently, waving her hands around to emphasise her point.

"That's not true" I tried to explain but my words didn't have much power in them. I knew she was right.

"Really? So you haven't been moping around the house for the past fortnight?" Libby asked rhetorically "of course you have and you know it! Look Piper it's not the end of the world ok? If you're really that hung up on Damon, and I don't know why you would be, then you need to do something about it"

"I can't!" I shouted, standing up and storming away in fluid movement.

"Why not?" Libby called after me, running to try and keep up with me.

"Because I won't myself" I screamed back.

Gasping for breath she caught up with me.

"Why?" she mumbled as she sucked in oxygen.

"Because I won't let myself be hurt again" I whispered "not like last time".


	7. Chapter 7

_Ok so the seventh chapter is up and well the truth is coming out! Thanks to the people who reviewed and added me to alerts, they make me very happy :) Please enjoy and review! _

_Rachel x _

Chapter 7 

Libby was quiet after that. She didn't know what to say. What could she say? We were quiet, both of us unsure of what we should do now. I shook my head and set off back through the woods. I wasn't prepared to suffer like this. They didn't know what it was like. I strode through the trees until I reached the top of my street. I could hear Libby rushing after me but I ignored her. I powered my way down the street and crashed into the house.

"Mom?" I called "I'm taking the car"

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Mom asked, concerned.

"I'm fine, mom, I'm just taking the car. I won't be long" I rushed.

Reluctantly, mom handed over the keys and I clutched them in my hand. The cool metal calmed me slightly. I clicked the button on the keys and the lights of the car flashed. I jumped into the car, breathing heavily. I reversed out of the drive; I could see Libby in the review mirror, watching me with worried, confused eyes.

I drove through town but I didn't know where I was going. I didn't know where he lived. I pulled to a stop in the car park next to the Grill. Angrily, I banged my head repeatedly on the steering wheel. I gasped as a knock sounded on my window. I shot up and saw Bonnie at my window, her brow furrowed. She gestured to the window, I flicked the switch and it buzzed down.

"Are you ok, Piper?" Bonnie asked.

"Where do Damon and Stefan live, Bonnie?" I gushed.

"Piper…I'm not sure I should tell you"

"Why not?" I asked.

"Look…Piper…you're better off staying out of all this" she said hesitantly.

"Staying out of all what?"

Bonnie was quiet, biting her bottom lip with pearly white teeth.

"Bonnie…tell me where he lives…or go away" I eventually told her.

"They live at the boarding house…follow the main road out of town and you'll see it" she mumbled, looking unsure of whether or not she was doing the right thing. I squeezed her hand.

"Thanks Bonnie" I smiled.

I was about to drive away but she clung to my hand a little tighter.

"Damon's dangerous Piper…you're better off without him…I'm telling you this as a friend, I've seen him hurt people time and time again. I don't want to see you ending up like the rest of them" Bonnie told me, her eyes pleading for me to believe her.

"Thanks Bonnie, but this is just something I have to do"

"Do what you have to do" she smiled sadly.

I drove down the main road that wove through town and followed it till I was surrounded by trees. My heart was jumping crazily in my chest; baboosh, baboosh, baboosh. Over and over like a hidden mantra. I saw the boarding house rise in front of me and my heart seemed to slam up into my throat. I drove down the drive and halted In front of the house. House didn't seem to fit…mansion might have been a more apt description. I sucked in a breath. From the car I could hear arguing, really loud arguing. Part of me wanted to rush on in there and have it out with Damon, but a bigger part of me told me to stay and listen, so I did.

"You've hurt her, Damon! I told you to stay away from her, I told you because I knew this would happen. And look, I was right! You promised me, Damon, you promised you wouldn't hurt Piper" Stefan yelled.

My cheeks seemed to flame at the sound of my name. Damon and Stefan were arguing about me. I listened closer for Damon's reply.

"Go away Stefan, you _don't_ want to get me angry right now" Damon shouted back although along with the aggression it still held some of its cockiness.

"Don't threaten me, Damon. You're the one in the wrong here. Elena says she's in bits, refusing to do anything. She's barely responsive. All she's doing is getting up, going to school, looking after Thea, and going to sleep. She won't talk to anyone. All because of you!"

Stefan was wrong. That wasn't all I was doing. I was talking to people, or at least I talked to people if they talked to me.

"Right now" Stefan continued "Elena and Caroline are looking after Thea without Piper knowing just so Libby can _try _and talk some sense into her"

"It's not like I took a bite out of her Stefan!" Damon roared.

"No, you did worse, you didn't even give her an explanation"

"How is that worse? She's alive isn't she? I could have killed her, I promised you that I wouldn't physically hurt Piper, and I kept that promise. While I was with Piper I didn't hurt her, I didn't hurt Thea, and I didn't hurt any other human on the planet. I've been on the bagged crap!"

"You hurt her emotionally Damon, that's just as bad"

"What do you want me to say, Stefan? That I'm sorry? Yeah, I'm sorry. That I hate myself for it? Yeah I do. I don't care what you think of me right now Stefan. Now move out of my way before I spill all that squirrel blood you drink out onto the floor, ok?"

What was her, a serial killer? What the hell was going on? What did he mean by 'I could have killed her'? What did he mean by 'take a bite out of her'? These thoughts swirled around my head, till they made me dizzy. I glanced up at the sound of a door slamming open and went eye to eye with Damon. His eyes met mine and they were filled with shock, trepidation, guilt, amongst many others.

He stood for a moment and called Stefan's name. Stefan shuffled out before realising that I was sitting in my car, right in front of them. I saw him swear softly under his breath. My shaking hand hovered above the ignition. What do I do? I asked myself. Do I run? Do I stay? I'm sure this fear was written all over my face.

Slowly, Stefan edged towards my car; the window was still down after my talk with Bonnie. I let out a little gasp as he got closer. My hand edged closer to the ignition. He smiled weakly.

"It's ok, Piper" he said quietly "we're not going to hurt you, are we Damon?"

I glanced to Damon; he shook his head, not looking me in the eyes. His mouth was set in a firm, hard line and his jaw was tensed.

"We should talk, Piper. Come inside" Stefan continued.

"I…I don't think I want to come inside" I managed to stutter out.

"I promise we won't hurt you" he told me "but you need to know the truth; you only heard part of a _very_ long story"

"Am I really safe?" I whispered.

Stefan smiled sadly and nodded his head, "you're safe with me". I noticed how he didn't say with Damon too. With shaking hands I unplugged my seat belt and opened the car door. Slowly, Stefan led me towards the boarding house. Damon didn't look at me, and I didn't look at him. But I felt him behind us. Stefan led me into one of the reception rooms and gestured for me to sit down on an antique looking leather armchair. Silently, I did as he said and knotted my hands on my knee.

"I'm sorry you had to hear our argument" Stefan said as he took a seat opposite me, Damon stood against the door frame looking very brooding.

"Why?" I finally replied "so that I wouldn't have to know the truth"

"Partly, partly because this wasn't ever supposed to be the way you found out" Stefan explained looking apologetic.

"You weren't ever going to know" Damon interrupted, glaring at his brother.

"So you were both just going to keep me in the dark about whatever the hell you two are doing? No, I don't think so, whatever this is, this isn't fair. They all know, right? They're all in on it too aren't they? Elena, Bonnie, Jeremy, Alaric? They all know this big secret"

Stefan looked guiltily down at the floor and I almost pitied him, almost. I felt physically sick, they had been talking about murder, hurting people, blood. And they were all in it. What was going on?

"Tell me what is going on" I repeated, my voice holding an eerie calm that was lilted with authority.

Stefan shared a look with Damon who merely shrugged, but I could see it in his eyes that whatever Stefan was about to tell me was something Damon didn't want me to know. Stefan opened his mouth and formed words but didn't say them. He sighed and rubbed his eyes before looking back at me.

"We…Damon and I…we're not like you…we're…well…we're different" Stefan stumbled.

"Different?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"God, spit it out little brother" Damon almost snarled, he turned to face me and looked me right in the eyes, "what he's trying to tell you is that we're vampires; bloodsucking, evil, vampires"

I felt my mouth drop open in shock. My head spun and my breathing sped up a mile a minute. Until it all went black. The word 'vampire' ringing in my ears.


	8. Chapter 8

_I am so so sorry that it has been so long since I last updated but I just haven't had the inspiration or the inclination to do so. But today it hit me and I had to write up the next chapter, so here it is. Please enjoy and please review :) _

Chapter 8 

"Urgh" I groaned, my head thumping and pounding as if someone was going at it with a sledgehammer.

"How're you feeling?" a voice filled with concern asked.

"Like I'm going insane" I muttered pushing myself up into a sitting position.

"That could be a possibility" Stefan smiled as he helped me into a chair.

"More of a certainty" I muttered.

I stayed still as I waited for my head to stop spinning while Stefan went to get me a glass of water. Damon was still in the room, he had been next to me when I'd woke up but he'd moved back to the doorway now that I was ok. I didn't look at him, I couldn't look at him. When Stefan came back he handed me the glass of water and I took a mouthful.

"Is it true?" I said quietly, knowing fine well that they knew what I was asking.

"Yes, it is true" Stefan sighed "Damon and I are vampires".

"You kill people" I said bluntly.

Stefan shook his head.

"No…I mean we have…I try not to and most of the time I don't…but sometimes I slip up" Stefan told me brokenly, he shook his head as if to sort each word into a better order, "I don't want to be a monster, Piper. I want to be as human as I can possibly be, for Elena…and for myself. I drink the blood of animals so that I don't harm a human. But sometimes, if someone's bleeding, and it takes me by surprise…I lose control. I'm not telling you this to scare you, Piper; I'm trying to be honest"

"You try to be good?" I asked him.

"Yes, I try very hard".

I nodded; I could tell from the look in his eyes that he was being honest, that he was sincere. But that wasn't enough for me, I had to hear what _he _had to say, I had to hear Damon's version of all of this.

"And what about you, Damon?" I asked, with my voice breaking and wobbling a little.

I finally met his eyes.

"I've killed people, too many for you to even comprehend" Damon began, his voice void of emotion, "but I'm not hurting anyone now, I drink bagged blood, I don't hurt humans anymore"

"How can I trust either of you? How can I trust Elena and Bonnie, or Jeremy and Mr Saltzman? I let you all into my lives, you've all been around my baby and all this time you've had this secret. All of this time you could have snapped and drank us both dry!" I shouted.

Damon pounced forwards, as if he'd been restrained this whole time and now he was finally free.

"I wouldn't hurt Thea and you know it…and I wouldn't hurt you" Damon shouted back, eyes blazing with emotion.

"How do I know? How do I know?" I repeated.

"You don't" Stefan said quietly, and in the background I heard the front door opening, "you just have to trust us, we won't hurt you and we won't hurt your family. That isn't what we're about"

"They mean what they say" Elena said from behind me "Stefan's a good guy; he wouldn't hurt anybody, not if he can help it. And as much as it pains me to admit it, Damon can be a good guy too. You need to give us all a second chance"

"You kept this secret from me, Elena" I snapped as I whirled around to face her "you put my daughter at risk"

Elena smiled meekly and I noticed that Jeremy, Alaric and Bonnie were hovering at the back of the room, unsure of how to act.

"You all kept this from me"

"We did what we thought was right, Piper" Bonnie interrupted, "this world is dangerous. It isn't safe, and trust me, there are far more dangerous things in the world than the people in this room. I don't like Damon, but he's changing, at first it was Elena changing him, now it's you. Don't get me wrong he's still this arrogant pain in the ass and I still can't stand him, but Damon wont hurt you, and neither will we".

I shook my head and closed my eyes. Why was this happening? Why was this all happening now, to me? What had I done? Damon had left the room, skulked off up the stairs.

"Elena?" I said "can I really trust you? Can I trust all of you, especially around Thea?"

"Of course you can Piper, we're family" Elena smiled; I could see the tears welling in her eyes.

She crossed the room and wrapped her arms around me. She pulled me tight and whispered in my ear.

"There are worse guys out there than Damon; he really does care about you. Go to him, let him explain".

Wordlessly, I squeezed her hand and headed towards the stairs, drying my eyes and holding my head high. I wasn't sure where I was going exactly but it didn't take me long to find Damon's room. I took in a deep breath before knocking lightly on the final closed door on the corridor. I pushed the door open and spotted Damon. He was standing with his back to me, looking out the window into the boarding house grounds.

I took in my surroundings. His room was pretty plain really, a huge bed with grey sheets and a large wardrobe. There was a wall lined with books and a mirror propped up against one wall. There was door to my left that I assumed led to the bathroom.

"Damon" I said softly.

At first he didn't do anything, but then he finally turned around to look at me.

"Talk to me, explain all of this, please" I whispered.

He was quiet for a few moments, watching me intently with that look he has. It made me go all warm and fuzzy and that really wasn't what I wanted right now. Right now I wanted to know the whole, complete truth, every last bit of it. Finally, he looked away from me and spoke.

"I'll explain" Damon began "but not here"

"Ok, where?"

"I know a place"

I followed Damon out of the house, avoiding the others, and he led me to my car.

"You ok to drive?" he asked, not looking at me.

"Um…yeah I think so"

I fished in my pocket for my keys and we climbed into the car. Damon didn't speak for the twenty minute drive except to give me directions. We drove till we reached…well till we reached nowhere. There was nothing around, just wide open green fields and trees and blue sky all around us.

We parked up in a lay-by and climbed out of the car. We walked until we were in the middle of a field, there was a big, old rock in the middle and he beckoned for me to sit down. I sat cross-legged and waited for him to start talking.

"I didn't want it to be like this" he said quietly.

This was so uncharacteristically Damon, usually when he was explaining something to someone he seemed so defensive and sarcastic. But at the same time it was so Damon, because he never seemed as defensive with me, or maybe I was just trying to make myself feel better by thinking it.

"How was it supposed to be?" I murmured.

"I don't know…but not like this. But with you nothing I ever do seems to go to plan" he grumbled "I shouldn't have let myself get so involved in all of this, with you and your family, but especially you. But you sucked me in with your weird ways and your laugh and your… your… you. Everything about you just sucks me in and I can't stop myself. I told myself fine, ok, just be friends. And it wasn't really working but it was ok. And then we kissed…and now you know the truth. You know what I am; you know what I could do to you"

"I don't understand" I said, shaking my head, "I'm not important or pretty or interesting…or anything. I'm just a single mom with a stupid crush on you! I don't understand how we got to this. You…I'm not your type…I'm not anyone's type…I don't 'suck' anyone in"

Damon laughed bitterly.

"I wish…look, I'm not good at all this emotional stuff, ok? That is more Stefan's thing. Me? I'm the bad boy brother who kills the girls, drains them dry just because I can. I had that down. And now what am I? What have I come to? I'm falling for my brother's girlfriend's cousin, and I'm a vampire. And you've got a baby, and Thea's safety comes first. I'm dangerous, I get it. I'm not safe"

We were quiet for a while; I mulled things over in my head. Was he really as dangerous as he says he is?

"You said it yourself…you wouldn't hurt Thea, that you wouldn't hurt either of us" I said "if that's the case, then why ignore me. I've been going out of my mind, and you've known all along why you left me, and so did the others. I don't understand why…I just…"

"Look I never wanted to hurt you Piper. But with me, your likely to. Not necessarily by me, but by anyone. I have a lot of enemies, Piper, I wouldn't want to put you in that kind of danger, and especially not Thea"

"It's not your decision to make, Damon. I really like you, Damon. If…if you promise not to hurt anybody, that you won't hurt me or Thea… then I want to be with you. And if these enemies come then we'll take it, together" I said boldly, somehow finding courage deep inside of me, something inside of me that made me want to fight for whatever it was that we had.

Damon came towards me, quicker than humanly possible and kissed me. We kissed and I was stupid and started crying like a baby. He just laughed it off and kissed me again, and somehow, I knew, I knew deep in my bones and in my heart and in every single part of me that I had to be with him, no matter what.


	9. Chapter 9

I'm sorry it's been so long since i've updated but i've finished school now until september so i'm hoping to get new chapter up every week :) maybe two chapters a week if i'm feeling inspired :)

I don't own vampire diaries - wish i did but i dont!

Please read and review x

Chapter 9 

We sat in the field for a little while, Damon's arm wrapped securely around my shoulder and my head resting against his chest. We sat there until it started getting dark, I checked my watch. It was getting late and I had to get back to put Thea to bed. Mom and Libby would be worried too. Hopefully Elena and Stefan would have covered for me but no doubt they'd be worried, especially Libby, she was always a worrier.

"Damon?" I murmured.

"Hmmm" he replied, looking down at me with those blue, blue eyes.

"I've got to get back, Thea needs to be put to bed and I've barely seen her all day, and my mom will be worried, and Libby…" I babbled.

"Calm down Piper, we'll go back now" he laughed.

We stood up and walked back across the field to the car. I unlocked the car and we both climbed in. I drove and he rested his hand on my leg as I did so. We were silent as we drove back to my house, but it wasn't an awkward silence like on the outward journey. When I pulled up in the driveway, Libby rushed out to greet me, Athena on her hip. She had a face like thunder but I could see the relief in her eyes.

"Thank God you're ok" Libby murmured as she pulled me into a one armed hug, when she leaned away her features lightened a touch.

"You owe me big time; I told her you were having boy troubles" Libby explained and glanced up at Damon, "anyway, you can tell me all about it later"

"Thanks, Lib" I replied, smiling lightly and taking Athena from her, "where is mom anyway?"

"In town with Aunt Jenna, they're having a pedicure or something. No doubt she'll want to give you the 'talk' again when she gets back – not that it worked last time, huh?" Libby joked dryly.

I glared playfully and swatted her arm, she glared teasingly back.

"Anyway, I'm going out now, Carter's playing in the lounge – watch him for me" Libby grinned, winking and walking off.

"Hey, where're you going?" I called after her.

She blushed a little.

"Out" she repeated before speeding up and walking away.

"Come on in" I told Damon, walking up the drive and into the house, murmuring to Athena as I went.

I checked on Carter – who was happily playing some racing game on the Wii – and made Damon and I a drink in the kitchen. We carried them upstairs and I sat down on my bed. I kicked off my shoes and crossed my legs, sticking Athena down on top of them. Damon sat down next to me.

"Here, hold her" I said, holding Athena out to him.

"I don't know…" he said, looking nervy.

"Oh, come on. She's a baby, she's not going to bite – get it? Vampire joke?" I laughed.

"Not funny, Piper" Damon chastised but reaching out to take my daughter.

"Oh I think it is" I smiled.

Damon nervously took her into his arms and settled her. She gurgled happily, laughing a little. Damon smiled down at her and I could see his eyes light up.

"See" I murmured "that's not so bad"

"No" Damon agreed "not bad at all.

He looked up at me and smiled. He leaned forward, holding Athena to him and placed a kiss lightly on my lips. I smiled and squished up next to him. In one arm he held Thea, and he wrapped the other around me.

"You're mom will be back soon, I should…" Damon began.

"Be quiet, Damon" I said, putting my hand over his mouth, "don't ruin the moment"

When I woke up the next morning I was tucked up in my duvet in the clothes I'd been wearing the day before, and Athena was in her crib. And Damon was gone. I smiled to myself as I lay there. I'd fallen asleep in Damon's arms. I was quite happy with that, although I would have liked him to have been there when I woke up. But even I knew that that was silly, what with my mom due back and Libby and Carter just downstairs. Oh God, Carter. Did Damon check on him for me too? He was a sweet guy really.

I rolled over and pulled the covers off of my body. I reached out an arm and picked up my cell phone. Two new messages and I'd even had a lie in. My day was going well. I quickly opened the first message. It was from Elena: _hey Piper :) hope everything's ok? Stefan and I are popping round later – want to talk, make sure you're ok with the big bad secret. Give Thea a kiss from me x_. It was nice that they wanted to check on me, but I hoped that Stefan wouldn't go all funny on me because I knew his secret. He was a vampire. It sounds stupid, doesn't it, saying it like that? It just doesn't seem real. Although I knew from first hand experience that it was.

The second message was from an unknown number. I opened it and read it through twice. _Piper, it's Rory. I'm coming to Mystic Falls. We need to talk. It's about the baby"_. I took in a shaky breath. Rory was Athena's father. He was coming to Mystic Falls. Why was he coming to Mystic Falls? I hadn't heard from him since Athena was born. He'd come to the hospital with his mom, she'd stayed outside while he talked to me. He told me that he didn't want to be a dad, that that wasn't him. He'd reached into his pocket and pulled out a cheque for twenty thousand dollars in his mother's name.

"This is for Athena, so you can look after her properly" Rory had said.

"We're leaving, Rory. We're going to Mystic Falls, Virginia" I'd replied.

When we'd left I'd emailed him our new address, he hadn't replied, and I hadn't heard from him since. I'd opened a bank account for Athena for when she was eighteen, and I'd cashed in the cheque. I'd put him out of my mind. And now he was back. My hand that was holding my phone was shaking, and it fell to the floor. I took a deep breath and told myself to pull it together.

I got up, got dressed and sorted out everything I needed for Athena. I woke her up and got her cleaned up and fed. Mom was out with Libby and Carter and had left the car. I locked the front door and strapped Athena in. I drove to the Salvatore Boarding House. He was waiting on the doorstep for me, I assume he heard the car. I climbed out and smiled meekly at him.

"Athena's dad's coming to Mystic Falls" I told him.


	10. Chapter 10

_Chapter 10 is up! Thank you for your support :) Please read and review! _

_Rachel x _

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Chapter 10

I burst into tears and Damon wrapped his arms around me, encircling me. We stood there, his hand rubbing comforting circles on my back, and his warm breath ruffling my hair. He let go of me, leaving me standing outside his front door, to get Athena from the car, he threw the baby bag over his shoulder and held Athena close. It shocked me how right it looked, how surprisingly fitting fatherhood looked on him – even if it was just for a that moment. He had such a bad boy exterior, but really, he was such a nice guy; he just didn't want to show it very often or to many people.

Damon reached for my hand and pulled me inside the house. Fortunately, Damon was the only one in; Stefan was out hunting deer or squirrel or some other creature. I didn't want any more witnesses to my little breakdown. Damon sat me down on the sofa, pushing me down by my shoulders. He sat down beside me, settling Athena down on his knee; he dumped the bag down on the floor beside him. Athena giggled up at him. He looked down at her and then back at me; grinning. My heart swelled as he held her close.

"I don't want to break her" he murmured "but it's not so scary anymore"

"I'm sure they can sense fear. When she was first born I was terrified I was going to mess up, drop her on her head or something. But after a while you get used to being a mom, and having a baby – I wouldn't say it gets any easier, but it gets more manageable. And being with her more than makes up for it" I said.

We sat there quietly for a moment, Damon jiggling Athena around on his knee. I got my phone out of my pocket. I scrolled through to the text that Rory had sent me. I sat the phone down on my thigh.

"Rory sent me a text; he's coming here, to Mystic Falls. He says that he wants talk about Athena" I told Damon.

"What's so bad about Athena's dad coming to town?" Damon asked me.

"Nothing bad exactly" I sighed "it's just that he didn't want anything to do with Thea before. I told him I was pregnant and he told me that he didn't want to be a part of her life and that he wasn't ready to be a dad. He was a bit of a ladies man, and really full of himself, you know the type? Well, to be honest, in some ways he's a bit like you. He came from old money, his family was pretty rich. He came to see me, gave me cheque for twenty thousand dollars and told me again that he couldn't be a part of her life. And then we left and I haven't heard from him in months"

"Maybe he's changed his mind?" Damon said "maybe he just wants a second chance with her…she's his daughter after all"

"Yeah…maybe. I don't know…I over reacted. It's just that I've had to cope on my own for months; I've had my mom and Libby, and now I've got Elena and you, and Caroline. But I'm still the only parent that Thea has had. But now he's coming back and I don't know what it is that he wants. What if he comes back for a while and then decides it isn't what he wants and disappears? I don't want Thea to get hurt. I know she's only a baby but babies still know these things. I don't want her to be hurt by him…like I know he's capable of doing"

Damon squeezed my hand and sat Athena on my knee. I held her close to me.

"Well…we'll see what he wants when he comes to Mystic Falls" Damon said, then he grinned "and he'll have to go through me before he hurts either of you. And as I vampire…I'm pretty sure I'm invincible"

"You wish" I laughed, leaning over and kissing him.

I sighed and picked up my mobile, opening up a blank message. _Ok, Rory, let me know when you're in town. See you then. Piper. _It was short and blunt but at least I'd replied to him. I'd just have to wait and see what was to come of it.

I waited on tenterhooks for two days, being nervy and on edge, jumping at the slightest of things. When Stefan and Elena had come round to the house to make sure I was ok, I told them about Rory coming. Elena knew all about him, I'd told her all about him in our emails. They'd been supportive. Elena telling me that she'd watch Athena for me when I met up with Rory; just so that I wouldn't be persuaded by her sitting there next to me in her pram. Stefan just told me comfortingly that he was sure everything would turn out ok. Surprisingly, that too made me feel better about the situation. I didn't tell my mom or Libby about Rory, I wanted to be sure of what was happening before I caused them anymore distress. My mom hadn't ever particularly warmed to Rory, and neither had Libby. It wasn't that he was ever horrible to me or to them; it was just that he seemed to think he was better than us, because he came from money.

So then two days later, I got a text from Rory. _Piper, I'll be in Mystic Falls in an hour. Where can we meet? Rory. _My stomach lurched and my hand tightened on the cushion that was next to me. I quickly rang Damon and told him about the text; he suggested that we meet up with Rory at the Grill. A good public place where it wouldn't be so awkward. Or at least I hoped it wouldn't be. I rang Elena and she said she and Stefan would be at the house in ten minutes to watch Athena for me.

Mom was out with Aunt Jenna shopping; mom wanted a new bag for when she started her course in a few days time. Carter was at soccer club, and Libby was out with Tyler. I was sure that there was something going on there. When all the Rory stuff was out of the way I'd have to talk to her about it, sister to sister.

I sent Rory a text back telling him where to meet Damon and I. I don't know why, but I didn't tell him that Damon was going to be at the Grill with me, I wanted to surprise him. It was strange. I didn't tell him about Athena not being there either. I didn't want him to see her yet, not until I knew what was going on properly.

Twenty minutes passed and almost simultaneously, Stefan, Elena and Damon arrived. Elena rushed over and picked up Athena, hugging her and laughing along with her. Her school bag was still slung over her shoulder. Stefan smiled as he watched her. I felt a pang of pity wash through me. Elena and Stefan could never have children; it was biologically impossible. She'd not get to be a mother. Unless they adopted, which would be a bit strange since Stefan didn't age.

"Good luck" Elena smiled, hugging me.

"Thanks. See you later" I said.

Stefan squeezed my hand encouragingly on my way out. Damon kissed me and for a moment all my worries went away. It was just me and him; together, it was enough. We pulled away and I grabbed my bag.

"We'll go in my car" Damon said.

It was a good job that he'd brought his car; mom and Jenna were out in ours. We drove in silence. I tapped my foot and my fingers reflexively, nervously. Damon didn't stop me, he just drove. In a way it was good that he didn't say anything. I didn't want him to. I just wanted him to drive. But I did want him there. I needed him there.

When we arrived at the Grill Damon held my hand.

"Are you ready for this? We don't have to go in if you don't want to" Damon said quietly.

"No, we're going in" I said.

We got out the car and pushed open the door to the Grill. Sitting at the bar, beer in hand, was Rory. He looked the same as ever, dark blond hair, slim, muscled body; jeans and a t-shirt. But there was something different about him. I could sense it. I could tell. He turned towards the door. He raised the bottle at me; sunlight glinted off the ring on his finger.


	11. Chapter 11

_Sorry for the wait but the next chapter is up :) i'm having a bit of writers block but im doing my best to get the chapters up :) please read and review to let me know how im doing - good or bad? Ok so enjoy!_

_Rachel x_

* * *

Chapter 11

I held my head high, not willing to show Rory just how nervous I was. I wanted to show that I had changed, that I was stronger now, that I was a proud mom, that no matter what I was the one with the power here. Of course that was silly, I was crapping myself with nerves and I didn't feel strong at all.

"Hello Piper" Rory grinned "its been too long"

"Not long enough" I heard Damon mutter. I resisted smirking.

"Hello Rory" I greeted.

"Drink?" he asked me as I sat down.

"Bourbon" Damon interrupted.

"No drinks Rory" I said "let's just cut the crap here ok? What do you want? Why are you here in Mystic Falls?"

"Easy" Damon murmured into my ear.

"No. He walked out of my life, he didn't want anything to with with Thea or me, so I think I deserve an honest answer" I said tensely.

Rory sat up a little straighter in his chair and his smile became more strained. He cleared his throat and looked up to meet my eyes, moving his hands so that the light didn't glint off his ring so much.

"I wanted to apologise for how I treated you, Piper. It was wrong of me to try and buy you off like I did" Rory said "but I can't change that now, and I want to be apart of Athena's life. I've had time to think about things, and I want to know my daughter. I've missed enough of her life already"

"How can I believe that, Rory? I've been coping without you just fine, why should I let you help now?"

"This isn't about me helping you, Piper" he insisted "this is about me being a dad to my daughter. Doesn't she deserve to have a dad?"

"Not one who abandons her" I said sourly, standing up abruptly and stepping backwards.

I backed up into a waitress who sent her tray of drinks to the floor with a crash. I tripped backwards too, along with the waitress. I cut my arm on the glass and cursed, lifting it up so that I could see it better. Blood was seeping down my arm but it wasn't too bad.

"Are you ok?" Damon asked me, helping me to my feet.

"Yeah, I'm fine" I said with a nod of my head.

The waitress was ok too, she was clearing up the bits of broken glass. I looked up to Rory. He was on his feet, his body was tensed, shoulders locked at a painful angle and his jaw tight. His eyes were on my arm. I saw a faint quiver of veins under his eyes. My head didn't seem to want to make the connection straight away but Damon did. He was standing in front of Rory immediately.

"Calm down" Damon said with authority "hold your breath and look away, it'll help."

Rory didn't say anything, he seemed to be fighting with himself. That's when it finally clicked in. Rory was a vampire, and my blood was tempting him. I lowered my arm. Eventually, after what seemed like forever yet no-one else seemed to notice, Rory looked away.

"Go clean up, Piper" Damon said, looking at me but then quickly looking back to Rory, "we'll meet you outside".

I nodded stiffly. I didn't trust myself to speak. Rory was a vampire. That was all I could think about. I backed away towards the toilets. Luckily, nobody was around. I slammed the door shut behind me and took a deep breath. I crossed the room to the taps and let them spout water into the basin. First I cleaned up my arm methodically, then I splashed water in my face, trying to let the coolness of the water calm me down.

How could Rory be a vampire? How was that even possible? Was he here because he was a vampire? Did he want my blood? Athena's? Was he blood crazed, or in control? Would he hurt me or my daughter?

I took another steadying breath and left the toilets. I walked numbly to the car park. I saw Damon and Rory standing beside of Damon's car. Damon stood a little taller as I slowly walked nearer. My heart was beating hard and fast with fear and anger in my chest.

"I'm sorry, Piper" Rory immediately apologised.

"What the hell was that in there?" I said viciously but quietly, I couldn't have anyone over hearing this "you think you can just turn up here and nearly suck me dry? Since when were you a vampire, Rory? You sure as hell never used to be"

"I was changed a month or so before Athena was born" he admitted "you didn't notice because of the baby I guess, too happy to notice anything was wrong with me"

"You've been a vampire for just a few months and you thought it was ok to come here? Is that safe for Athena because I don't think it is"

"I'm in control of myself!" Rory insisted.

"That's not what it looked like in there" Damon interrupted.

Rory looked away, and shrugged with embarrassment.

"It just took me by surprise, I haven't had…blood…in a few days is all" Rory explained "look, I just want to be a part of Thea's life"

He sounded honest. He sounded like he really meant what he was saying. I let out a sigh.

"I believe you, Rory, but how can I trust you around my daughter after what just happened inside?" I asked him quietly.

I looked across at Damon, his face seemed guarded.

"Please, Piper, I just want to see her. Have your vamp friend be there" Rory said, nodding towards Damon.

I debated it for a minute, I looked at Rory's pleading face. I'd never have said Rory was the type of guy who'd want to be a dad, he was a bit of a bad boy like Damon. I wouldn't have thought that he'd be pleading with me. He seemed to have changed for the better.

"Would you be there, Damon?" I asked him.

"If that's what you want" Damon smiled but it didn't reach his eyes, something was wrong with him, I could tell.

"Do you think Stefan would mind being there too? Double the protection for Athena"

"My brother won't mind" he said shortly.

I nodded, not willing to have this discussion, whatever it may be about, with Damon right now.

"Ok, Rory, go find yourself something to drink, not a person" I said eyeing him meaningfully, "and meet me at my house, I'll give you the address"

I recited the address and he nodded once before walking away to his car.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Damon asked me.

"No, but he's Athena's dad, I have to give him a second chance" I shrugged.

Damon looked away before climbing into the car.

"Let's go then" he said mutedly.

I rolled my eyes and climbed into the car after him.


	12. Chapter 12

_I'm so glad that people are sticking with this story even though I haven't exactly been updating as regularly as I'd like to :) Thanks so much for reviewing the last chapter! It's definately made me more determined to keep writing! Please keep reading and reviewing! _

_Rachel x_

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Chapter 12

When I got home Elena and Stefan were in the living room watching the television. The baby monitor was beside them and when I walked in I could hear the soft breathing of Athena coming through the device. Libby and mom still weren't back yet, which I was thankful about, I didn't want them to just find Rory here. I'd need to explain everything to her or she would go absolutely ballistic with both me and Rory.

"Hey" I smiled "did she behave herself?"

"Of course she was. You shouldn't worry so much" Elena laughed "what did Rory have to say?"

"It's a long story" I said, flumping down into a chair. Damon sat down too.

"Well give me the short version then"

"The ex is a vampire, he wants to see baby" Damon said shortly.

Elena shot up from the sofa, her eyes wide with shock. Stefan stood up slightly slower and rested his hand on the small of her back. I slapped Damon's arm and glared at him. He raised his eyebrows as if to say "what have I done now?"

"What? Your ex is a vampire? And he wants to see Thea? Is that safe?

"Calm down, Elena" I sighed, running my hand through my hair, "yes, Rory is a vampire, and yes he wants to see Thea. He says he wants to be a dad; that he's missed enough of her life already and he wants to make up for that. I don't believe that he would purposely hurt Thea. He was always a bit of a loose canon but he'd never really hurt somebody, especially not a baby, and certainly not his own flesh and blood"

"That was the old Rory, right now Rory's a young vampire. Do you really think he can be trusted around your daughter?" Stefan said quietly.

"I want to give him a chance" I said firmly "but, Stefan, I'd appreciate it if you would be here when he comes round, just in case"

"That's fine by me" he said before looking to Elena.

"I'd stay too, but I've got to get back, Aunt Jenna just texted me; your mom's round at my place. Jeremy and I will keep her there as long as we can" Elena smiled.

"Thanks Elena" I replied, crossing the room to give her a hug, "you've been a big help to me today"

"What is family for, eh?" she laughed.

"I'll take her home and then I'll be back" Stefan told me.

"Thanks Stefan".

When they were both gone I began climbing the stairs to my bedroom. Damon walked slowly behind me. I didn't want to wake Athena, so after quickly checking that she was ok, I turned back around and closed my bedroom door. I spun to face Damon, folding my arms across my chest.

"What's up with you now, Damon?" I asked him.

Damon's jaw tightened.

"I'm fine" he said stubbornly.

I rolled my eyes at him.

"Do I look stupid to you? You've been huffy ever since we left the Grill"

Damon didn't say anything; he simply glared at a spot of wall above my head. I let out a groan of frustration.

"Damon! For God's sake, just tell me what is wrong?" I said, exasperated.

"Him!" Damon exploded "Rory, Saint Rory who can do no wrong"

"What do you mean 'Saint Rory'?" I asked him angrily.

"He left you Piper. He left you _pregnant_, and here you are giving him another chance like he never hurt you. He comes waltzing in there after months and after a quick slap of the wrist he's back in your good books. Is this it then, huh? Am I completely out of the picture? Are you, he and Thea going to be some cute little family now?"

I glared at him for a moment before I sat down on the stairs. Reluctantly, Damon sat down beside me.

"You really think I don't realise that? I spent my entire pregnancy worrying about Thea only having one parent, I worried I wouldn't be good enough. I hated him for leaving me to deal with it all on my own. He's her dad, Damon. I won't stop him from seeing her as long as he doesn't hurt her. But as for me and him – there's no way on earth that I'd ever take him back, even if he wanted me to which I highly doubt".

I was quiet for a moment and I grasped Damon's hand.

"I love you, Damon. There, I've said it. I love you, ok? Maybe you don't feel the same, but I love you. And nothing is going to change that, not even all this supernatural crap that surrounds us. I don't want to be a family with Rory, I want to be with you" I told him.

Damon looked up at me, leaned forward and kissed me, hard.

"I love you too" he murmured between kisses.

The door bell rang nearly twenty minutes later. It was Stefan. I smiled warmly at him when I let him in.

"I'm just making some chicken. Do you want some?" I asked him as I walked back into the kitchen.

"Why are you making chicken?" Stefan replied.

Damon was standing against the far wall smirked.

"It seems that Piper cooks when she's nervous" he chuckled.

I glared at him menacingly.

"Do you want some chicken or not?" I asked Stefan, pointing the knife I was using to cut up the chicken with at him.

"Um…yes" Stefan gulped.

Damon chuckled once more.

"Then sit down over there" I said, nodding to the table, "do you know what mom and Jenna are doing?"

"When I left they were playing karaoke with Carter, Elena and Jeremy" Stefan said with a smile.

"That should keep them busy" I laughed nervously.

I turned back to the chicken and continued preparing it before chucking it in a pan. Then there was nothing for me to do. I stood there for a moment, looking around the room wildly for something to do. What do I do now? I thought to myself.

"Calm down, Piper" Damon instructed as he rested his head on my shoulder "Stefan and I are here, even the Bambi killer can take down Rory if it comes down to it"

I sniggered and then smiled apologetically at Stefan who was glaring at Damon. Fortunately, it wasn't really in menace. I think Stefan quite enjoys Damon's company when Damon isn't being an ass. And really, Damon didn't have to be an ass all the time, in fact, if he wanted to he could be pretty normal – or as normal as Damon could ever be – most of the time. I'm not stupid enough to say all the time because this was Damon and I had pretty much accepted that he was going to be a stupid pain in the ass vampire some of the time.

"You love your brother really" I smirked at him.

In a flash, he had had whipped me around to face him and was standing so close to me that I gasped.

"Is that so?" he murmured.

"Um…yes" I squeaked.

Luckily, I was saved, quite literally, by the bell.

"I'll get it" I said in a freakish, embarrassing high pitched voice that I knew I would regret even more later.

When I pulled open the front door, I forced myself to smile through my nerves. Rory smiled as well and I could tell that he was nervous too; after all, he was going to see the daughter he abandoned. I opened the door wider and took a deep breath.

"Come on in, Rory" I invited, hoping that I wouldn't live to regret inviting him in.

He stepped forward into the house. I turned around to see Damon and Stefan standing at the foot of the stairs. Rory stepped forward towards Stefan. He extended his hand.

"Rory Vincent" he introduced.

"Stefan Salvatore" Stefan replied as he shook hands with Rory.

"Why don't you go sit in the living room, Rory, while I get Thea" I instructed.

"Sure" Rory said lightly.

Stefan led Rory into the living room as if Rory were his parolee. Damon followed me up the stairs, squeezing my hand encouragingly. I opened my bedroom door. Athena was already awake but thankfully she wasn't crying. I picked her up and held her close to me. Damon smiled and extended a finger towards her little hand. She tightened her fist around him and smiled.

"I think she really likes you" I told him.

"You think so?" he asked me quietly.

"Yeah I do"

We walked back downstairs and into the living room. I tried to push the idea of walking towards the gallows out of my head. Stefan was standing in the corner of the room and Rory was sitting down in one of the chairs. He stood up when we walked in. His eyes immediately went to Athena.

"You promise to be careful?" I asked him.

"I promise, Piper" Rory replied solemnly.

Carefully, I handed him Athena. He settled her in his arms and balanced her head against the crook of his elbow.

"Remember your strength" Stefan said quietly.

As I watched Rory and Athena I was reminded of the Rory I used to know before I got pregnant. The Rory I'd known almost all my life. I'd known him for as long as I could remember, we'd not always been close but we'd always known each other. We went to kindergarten together, elementary school, middle school, and then into high school. In my freshman year of high school, Rory had asked me out and I'd said yes. It was pretty cheesy really. He took me to the movies and he'd put his arm around me as we watched the film. It had been my first real date. We didn't really date for about a year after that. He was too busy with other girls and I was pretty much sidelined. We were friends but nothing more. But then, we got it together for real and stayed together till I got pregnant. Those last few months before I got pregnant had been pretty up and down for us. I'd had my suspicions that he'd been cheating but I'd been too wimpy to call him up on it and we'd argued a lot. But now, looking at him, I was starting to see some of the old Rory, the guy I'd known ever since kindergarten and not the guy who slept around with any girl who looked his way.

I sat down on the sofa and Damon sat down next to me. I rested my head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arm around my shoulders. This was all pretty dysfunctional really. Me and my boyfriend cuddling on the sofa while my vampire ex boyfriend bonded with the baby he abandoned, and my cousin's vampire boyfriend standing guard. But somehow it all seemed to be ok in my messed up world. That was until Libby walked into the room with Tyler.

"What the hell is going on?" she shouted.


	13. Chapter 13

_Hello again :) I hope you enjoy this chapter, i know it isnt really long or anything but i think it finishes at the right point. Or at least i hope so :) Please review and let me know what you think, good or bad. Thank you for the continued support! _

Rachel x

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Chapter 13

"Libby!" I gasped, jumping up from the sofa.

"Please tell me that that isn't Rory Vincent" Libby said menacingly.

Knowing fine well that he was indeed Rory Vincent, Libby jumped in before I could even defend myself.

"Urgh! Piper! How could you? After everything he did? What the hell is he even doing in Mystic Falls?

I grabbed Libby by her hand and pulled her into the kitchen so we could talk in private. Ok, so it wasn't completely private since the three vampires in the living room would be able to hear every word we were saying. But, it was the principle of the action that mattered.

"Look, I didn't plan all of this, Libby! Rory sent me a text asking to meet up, to talk about Thea. I couldn't exactly say no, now could I?"

Libby shook her head at me.

"On your head be it, Piper, because I won't have any part in this. And when mom comes home she won't either" Libby told me with narrowed eyes.

She whirled around, grabbing her bag that she'd dumped unceremoniously on the kitchen table.

"Libby, wait" I called after her".

"No!" She snapped, turning back around to face me, "I was there to pick up the pieces last time he hurt you, Piper. I was there when you went to the ante-natal classes; I was there when you had doctor's appointments. I was with you every step of the way"

"I know you were" I tried to say but she cut me off.

"You swore that you wanted nothing to do with him. You put that money away in the bank and you refused to touch it. You said that you'd rather struggle than have his blood money. Those were your words, Piper. And look at you now: all cosy in the living room, playing happy families with your new boyfriend and the father of your baby. You know what, Piper? I pity you, I really do. You must have zero self respect if you can let him back in so easily"

"Libby please" I cried.

"I'm sorry, Piper, but I can't even look at you right now" she said, storming from the kitchen.

A moment later I heard the front door slam. I burst into tears right there. How could Libby say such hurtful things to me, even if they were true? She was my sister. She was supposed to be on my side no matter what; like she always had before. I felt arms wrap around me and I cried into Damon's chest. What just happened had been so un-Libby. She didn't like conflict, and in the past she had always backed away from it whenever possible. But, I'd seen the fury in her eyes as she'd shouted at me. I could tell by the tenor of her voice that she was well and truly angry with me.

"She didn't mean it" Damon said into my hair as he held me.

"Yes she did" I balled "of course she meant it, and she's right! I did say those things, and she did have to pick up the pieces"

"You're doing what you think is best for your daughter, you're putting your feelings aside for her!" Damon insisted.

I leaned back from him and wiped at my tears. I looked up as Rory cleared his throat. He was standing in the doorway to the kitchen with Stefan right behind him. He looked uncomfortable, not that that particularly surprised me.

"I'm going to get off, let you think things through a bit" Rory told me "I think that maybe we rushed things a bit much here. Just text me, or give me a call, when you decide what's best"

I nodded numbly. I watched as he pressed a kiss to Athena's forehead. He passed her to me and I held her warm body in my arms.

"I really do want to be a part of her life, Piper" he said quietly before whizzing out of the house at vampire speed.

"I better be going too, I'll help Elena keep your mom occupied for a while" Stefan said awkwardly.

I handed Athena to Damon and crossed the room to Stefan and gave him a hug. For a moment he didn't respond but then he hugged me back.

"Thanks for helping today" I murmured.

"Elena would kill me if I didn't" he shrugged "and Athena's a pretty cute kid"

I laughed at his attempt at humour. I appreciated his efforts to try and cheer me up but really a little joke wasn't going to make much difference right now. I knew that it wasn't the end of the world, and that really there were a million other things I should be worried about, like the whole boyfriend is a vampire with lots of vampire enemies. But Libby was my sister. We had been so close, and the majority of the time we still were. However I couldn't tell her about Stefan and Damon being vampires. And I couldn't tell her about Rory being a vampire. And she wasn't telling me about Tyler. We were both keeping secrets and they were forcing us further and further apart. And as much as I may have wanted to, I couldn't tell her the secrets that I knew because for one they weren't mine to tell and most of all because I knew that they could put her in even more danger.

When Damon left for the night, I lay in bed, listening to Athena's breathing. Mom had come home an hour ago, and she had walked straight up stairs to her room, stopping once to glare at me with disappointment. That felt worse than her anger would have. Mom wasn't the type for big arguments. Instead, she just wouldn't speak to you, or if she did it was to express just how disappointed in you she was. And right now, I knew she was very, very disappointed in me. Carter didn't really know what was going on but he could tell that something was going down. He'd been pretty quiet while he ate his yogurt and then as soon as mom shouted down to say it was his bedtime he went straight up to bed.

Libby wasn't home yet. And I was determined to lay here in bed till she got home. I hadn't decided what to say to her yet but I knew that I would have to speak to her. I knew I couldn't just kick Rory out of Athena's life if he really wanted to be there for her, but I wasn't going to forgive him. I didn't harbour any feelings for him of course, but a girl just doesn't forgive and forget something like being abandoned by her boyfriend in her hour (or nine months) of need. So, I still didn't know what to tell Libby and the likelihood was that I wouldn't know what to say right up until I said it.

I wasn't too worried about where she was; well at least I tried not to be. I was sure that mom knew where she was because she would have been worried too if she didn't, she would have a search party out looking for her. I had a sneaking suspicion that she was at Tyler's. I wondered how serious those two were. I'd have to ask her when – if? – we got back on friendly terms.

I must have fallen to sleep not longer after I went to bed. I woke up with a start when Athena started crying for her feed. I blinked and rubbed my eyes before looking at the clock. It was just after three in the morning. Groggily, I got out of bed and picked Athena up.

"Come on then" I murmured as I settled her, slipping my feet into my slippers as I went.

I crept out onto the landing and couldn't resist peeping into Libby's room. She wasn't in there. Sighing, I carried on walking down the stairs and into the kitchen. I nearly jumped with fright when I saw Elena standing there.

"Elena!" I gasped "what are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

Elena smirked.

"I'm not Elena, I'm Katherine" she said with a voice that was dripping with menace.


	14. Chapter 14

_Hey :) i'm so sorry that its taken me so long to update...i just havent had the motivation until yesterday. Anyway i'm not going to harp on about it...so here is the chapter, i hope you like it. please let me know what you think _

_Thanks Rachel xx _

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Chapter 14

"Elena this isn't funny" I chastised in hushed tones "stop playing games with me, what are you doing here?"

Elena stepped forwards with her hands on her hips, she smiled harshly and I automatically held Athena closer to me.

"I've already told you, I'm Katherine and you're going to do everything I tell you to, or I'm going to hurt you, your baby, and your family" she said quietly with a sickly sweet tone to her voice.

As she spoke I saw the veins under her eyes become prominent and she bared her fangs. I immediately took a step back against the wall. My heart was pounding in my chest.

"What do you want from me?" I whispered.

"For now, I need you to give the Salvatore brothers a message" she told me.

"What message?"

"The game is on, nobody is safe, nobody in their precious town, until I get what I want" Katherine or Elena or whoever this was instructed.

"Now, repeat it" Katherine commanded me, stepping closer so that she was almost touching me.

I was too scared to do anything but do as she told me to. Once I had repeated her words.

"Good" Katherine smirked.

One minute she was there and the next she was gone. I let out a shaky breath and held Athena tight to my chest. I felt tears running down my face. I tried not to let out a sob. Mechanically, I got the bottle of Athena and fed her before slowly climbing the stairs. When I re-entered my room, I reached for my phone and with shaky hands I dialled Damon's number.

After two rings Damon picked up.

"Hello" he grumbled. His voice thick with sleep.

"Damon? It's Piper. Someone called Katherine was here" I told him, my voice shaking.

It was quiet for a moment.

"I'm on my way" Damon replied.

I sat down slowly in the living room, my whole body shaking. A sob was threatening to break free from my chest. I buried my face in Athena's head as a few tears leaked through. I knew I had to be quiet though, I couldn't have my mom waking up to find me terrified and crying in the living room in the middle of the night.

When I felt a hand clasp my shoulder I nearly screamed. I jumped out of my chair, whirled around and clutched Athena to my chest. I feared that Katherine had decided to come back. Thankfully it was Damon, with Stefan just behind him. As soon as I realised it was him, I threw myself forwards him, making sure I didn't crush Athena. He wrapped his arms around me tightly and rested his chin on the top of my head.

"Shh" he whispered "you're ok".

Damon rubbed a hand on my back comfortingly.

"I was so scared, Damon, she threatened Thea, and my family" I cried.

"I promise you that that won't happen" Damon said firmly.

I pulled away and wiped at some tears. Damon was dressed in sweats and a grey t-shirt. I had to admit, even when in shock and terrified, that he looked good. Stefan stepped forwards and smiled sadly at me.

"Who is she Damon? Why does she look like Elena? Why does she want me to tell you 'game on' " I asked.

Damon and Stefan shared a long look and didn't answer me. I glared at them both. I held back a frustrated growl.

"Tell me!" I hissed at them.

After a long moment, Stefan sighed.

"Why doesn't Damon stay here with you tonight and then we'll tell you everything in the morning" Stefan suggested.

"That might be best" Damon agreed "you don't want to wake up your mom"

I thought about it for a moment. As much as I wanted to know the truth, I didn't want to risk getting my mom involved in all of this.

"I would feel better with you here" I admitted "she might come back"

Damon nodded and turned to face Stefan.

"I'll see you in the morning then, brother" Damon smirked.

Stefan gave me a quick hug and a reassuring smile before whizzing out of the door at vampire speed. My eyes refocused. That was still going to take a bit of getting used to.

"I need to get a bottle for Thea" I whispered to Damon.

Still feeling shaky, I crept into the kitchen and approached the bottle warmer in the corner next to the fridge. I grabbed a bottle and placed it in Thea's mouth. She suckled greedily.

"Are you ready?" I asked Damon quietly as I stood at the foot of the stairs.

"I can just stay down here" Damon replied, nodding towards the living room.

I suppressed a chuckle and reached awkwardly for his hand.

"Don't be stupid, Damon" I murmured, before pulling him up the stairs.

We crept silently upstairs. I thought it was funny how I was sneaking a boy upstairs while my mother was sleeping without having a questionable motive. He was my bodyguard. We snuck into my room and after Thea decided she was full, I placed her into her cot. I blushed a little before climbing back into my bed. I pulled back the duvet to indicate that he should climb in beside me.

Damon smiled a little, slipped off his shoes and slipped in the bed beside me. Hesitantly, Damon placed an arm around me and I snuggled into his chest. He chuckled a little.

"I have to say" he whispered in my ear "this wasn't how I imagined us sleeping together"

"Don't go getting any ideas vamp boy" I warned.

I felt his laugh and I smiled to myself. He held me tightly and I closed my eyes. I really was falling for this guy, my protector.

When I woke up the following morning, I was surprised to find that Damon was still asleep in my bed. It was also a shock for me to see just how innocent and peaceful he looked. It was a change from his usual cocky smirk. Sitting up, I glanced in the mirror. God, I looked a mess. I looked to the cot and smiled when I realised that Thea was still asleep.

I felt an arm snake around my waist, and lips press softly on my shoulder and up to my neck. I grinned and turned myself around to face Damon. He kissed me and I lost all rational thought.

"Don't think that you're going to distract me, Damon Salvatore. You've still got a hell of a lot to explain" I told him.

I managed to pull myself away from him and I kicked my legs out of bed.

"I'm going to take a shower, will you be ok with Thea?" I asked him.

Damon grinned at me and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at me.

"Are you sure you don't need my help in the shower?" he smirked.

I chuckled quietly and shook my head, I grabbed some clothes and headed for the bathroom. I locked the bathroom door and turned on the shower. I think it must have been the quickest shower of my life.

Not only did I want to get back to Damon, but I was also desperate for him to take me back to the boarding house so that he could tell me about Katherine. I really needed to know who she was and what she wanted. But a little voice in my head kept telling me that I really didn't want to know. That I was better off not knowing. That Katherine was not just trouble, that she was something bigger than that.

I dressed quickly in a pair of old jeans and vest top. Luckily, I'd grabbed a one that wasn't stained with baby sick. I was really going to have to invest in some new clothes or I'd end up going to school looking like a tramp.

I walked back into my bedroom to find my mother, dressed in her bright flowery dressing gown, having a perfectly civil conversation with Damon while he rocked my daughter. I think my face must have betrayed my shock because my Damon smirked at me and my mum just laughed.

"I'm going to cook some pancakes for breakfast, you're more than welcome to stay, Damon" my mum smiled, before spinning around and walking towards me.

"I hope you used protection" she whispered to me before winking.

Damon, with his superior vampire hearing, had obviously heard my mother. He smirked at me while I blushed bright red. I was genuinely shocked. Even though me and Damon obviously hadn't done what my mom thought we had, I was completely flabbergasted by the fact that she was ok with it. When I'd been dating Rory, we hadn't even been allowed to go upstairs on our own. This was a completely new thing for me. No doubt I'd still get a 'talk' later on.

"I don't fancy a big breakfast with my mom so how about we grab some pancakes for the road and we go to yours and you and Stefan can fill me in on Katherine?" I proposed.

Damon grinned, put Thea down in the cot, and sauntered towards me, a mischievous glint in his eye. He began kissing me, his hands gripping my hips. Great, he was trying to distract me. He pushed me towards the bed, his hands brushing over the top of my jeans. I tried to access the rational part of my brain, pushing away any lust filled emotions.

"No, Damon, stop it" I mumbled against his mouth.

With a sigh he stopped kissing me and leaned back slightly, I rested my head on his chest for a moment before disentangling myself from him.

"As fun as this is" I told him as I grabbed my bag from the door handle and filled it with everything and anything, "you're not going to distract me, so hands off and let's go to your place"

He turned around, set his jaw, and nodded tensely.

"I'll meet you in the car" he said mutedly.

"Hey!" I called before he could escape from my room; he stopped but didn't turn to face me, "don't go all funny on me now! What's so bad about Katherine? Why won't you tell me?"

He whirled around to face me.

"Let's just go the boarding house and I'll tell you everything" Damon replied after a moments hesitation.

"You promise?" I whispered.

He nodded stiffly, then walked forwards and gripped my shoulders. He looked right at me.

"Just promise you won't hate me"

"How could I hate you, you idiot?" I laughed.

"I've done a hell of a lot of bad things, Piper, and Katherine…well a lot of it was because of her. I'm a bad person, but she's so much worse" he told me.

I shook my head and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. I squeezed his hand and he smiled a sort of sad half smile.

"Let's go then" he said.

I was fairly surprised when we arrived at the boarding house to find that the others weren't there. I'd expected this to be one of those occasions where the whole 'gang' got together to explain some secret they'd kept from me, but Stefan was the only one there.

"Hey" Stefan smiled before hugging me.

I parked Athena's buggy in the corner of the room, thankful that she'd fallen asleep on the ride over. I sat down in one of the armchairs and made my self comfortable. I had a feeling that this was going to be a tough conversation.

Damon was standing in the corner, his arms crossed across his chest. I tried to catch his eye but I was sure he was purposely avoiding me.

"So…who is she?" I asked when neither Salvatore seemed to be willing to start the conversation.

Stefan sighed, ran a hand over his chin, and sat down opposite me.

"Katherine was the vampire who turned us" Stefan began.

"Right…"

"Well, she compelled us…to believe that we were in love with her"

"Both of you? Like she compelled you and then when she was done with you she moved onto the next?" I asked, shock clouding my tone.

Stefan's jaw tensed and he shook his head.

"No, both of us, at the same time. We didn't know she was…in relations with the other"

Damon let out a bitter laugh.

"She's one twisted vampire" he practically barked "a venomous, conniving…"

I have to admit I was a little bit shell shocked when Stefan and Damon finally finished explaining everything that is Katherine to me. She was one evil woman. I couldn't help but hate her for what she'd done to them both. Especially Damon since he was the one who genuinely loved her at the time. It wasn't just compulsion for him.

"Piper…" Stefan said "are you ok?"

"Yeah…I'm ok…just a little scared, you know? What if she comes after Thea, or my family?"

"She won't hurt you, we'll make sure of that" Damon told me.

I just nodded; I knew that they would protect me if it came down to it. I felt a bit of a burden for it but I could live with that if it meant my daughter was safe. I stood up and crossed the room.

"Stefan? Could you watch Athena for me for…I need to speak to Damon for a minute?" I asked.

"Yeah, course" he smiled.

I walked out of the room and into the opposite room, Damon on my heels. Once in the room I heard Damon shut the door. He turned to face me.

"I just have one question and that's it" I told him quietly.

He nodded.

"Do you still love her?" I whispered; my voice catching.

I was terrified to hear the answer. What if he did still love her? What would I do then? I searched his face, searching for any hint of what he was feeling. He took a step towards me.

"I don't love Katherine. I did love her; I came to Mystic Falls in love with her, wanting to get her out of the tomb. But I don't love her now. I love you, Piper, I swear it, you've changed me, I want to be with you" he told me.

His eyes appeared to be so passionate; they seemed to be lit with fire. I smiled at him and he smiled back at me. He suddenly held my face and his hands and kissed me. I grinned against his lips and laughed. A cough interrupted us. It was Stefan, his face betraying his emotions. Anger, remorse, pain, sadness.

"What's wrong?" I asked him, dreading what his reply would be.

"It's Caroline" Stefan said sadly "Katherine turned her…and she killed a man"


	15. Chapter 15

_I hope you all enjoy chapter 15 :) I want to thank you all so much for supporting this story even though i can be unreliable with updates. Please let me know what you think :)_

Rachel x 

Chapter 15 

I blinked, not processing what Stefan had told me. I stared at him pleadingly, begging him to tell me that it was just some sick joke. But I knew that he was telling me the truth. I could tell by the look in his eyes and the fact that I knew that Katherine was a psychotic vampire. Once what he said seemed filtered into my brain I felt my heart lurch in my chest. _Not Caroline. _How could Katherine turn sweet, ditzy Caroline?

"Oh God" I murmured, lost for words.

"I'm going to get her now, she's at the carnival" Stefan told me.

I nodded, tears blurring my eyes slightly.

"I…um…I'll see if my mom can take Athena and…um…I'll meet you there" I replied quietly.

Stefan blurred out of the room, Damon wrapped me up in his arms. I rested my head against his chest for a moment before pushing away.

"You better go help Stefan" I told him.

"You need me"

"No, Caroline needs you. Go help her, but please, please don't hurt her. This isn't her fault" I pleaded with him.

He gave me a tight smile and nodded and then he was gone.

I wiped my eyes and went to get Athena. She was still fast asleep in her buggy. Without really thinking I put the buggy in the car and strapped Thea into her car seat. I climbed in and drove away from the boarding house. Time seemed to slow down as I drove back home. I needed to see Caroline. I hadn't known her long but she had become important to me. I felt bad that this was happening to her of all people. She was supposed to be oblivious to this whole supernatural world.

When I pulled into the driveway I jumped out of the car, grabbed Athena and bustled inside. I tried not to look like I was completely freaking out, which of course I was. Mum was inside doing some work for her new course. That made me feel a little guilty but this was literally a life and death – and I guess the vampiric state inbetween – situation.

"Hey, Mom" I grinned cheerily, plastering a fake smile on my face, "is it ok if I leave Thea here with you, she's fast asleep and I won't be out long"

Mom pursed her lips and checked her watch. With a sigh she nodded.

"Yes but only for an hour or so. I've got a meeting with my course manager and I don't want to be late" Mom said, pointing her pen at me to demonstrate her point.

"Course mom, I'll be back in an hour" I promised.

The carnival was heaving with activity. Body's were everywhere and the music was blasting. Any other day and I would be in my element, but not today. I glanced around but couldn't see anyone I knew. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. I called Damon.

"Hey" he greeted grimly.

"Where are you?"

He told me where he was and then hung up. I quickly weaved my way through the crowd till I reached an empty part of the carnival. Damon was standing with his arms folded across his chest, his jaw tight. Caroline was sitting on the floor, head in her hands, crying. Elena was stood just behind her and Stefan was crouched beside her, talking to her in soft hushed tones. Bonnie stood back, away from everybody else, a look of despair and disgust on her face as she stared at Caroline.

When Caroline heard me come closer she lifted her head. Blood coated the area around her mouth. Tear tracks streamed down her face and wispy veins rippled beneath her eyes.

"Oh, Caroline" I sighed before stepping closer to her and hugging her.

At first she was stiff below me but then soon wrapped her arms around me and cried against my shoulder.

"I didn't mean to" she wept "I couldn't help it!"

"I know sweetie, I know"

"Let's get you cleaned up" Stefan said, grabbing a hold of Caroline's hand and pulling her to her feet.

Elena, Stefan and Caroline disappeared towards the toilets. I ran a hand through my hair and turned to Damon. His eyes were hard. Slowly, I walked towards him.

"Will she be ok?" I asked him nervously.

A muscle in Damon's jaw flexed. He shrugged.

"Stefan seems to think he can help her get on the bunny diet" he said with a roll of his eyes.

"Well maybe you could help her with bagged blood, perhaps? You know I'm sure Caroline would appreciate the help. This is going to be tough for her…oh I do feel bad for her…and Matt of course" I said with a shake of my head.

"Maybe" he nodded "I better go...um…deal with the…um...body"

I didn't look in the direction of the body, knowing that if I did I'd probably end up being sick or blacking out or something equally as embarrassing. The thought of Damon burying the man's body in a shallow grave in some wood made me a little queasy but I knew that it was the only way. We couldn't let Caroline take the wrap for this. It wasn't her fault.

"Ok…but…um thank you, for not doing anything stupid, like killing her or something" I rambled.

Damon chuckled once.

"Nah, I wouldn't do that to you" he told me before walking away from towards the body.

Suddenly Damon dropped to his knees, clutching at his head. A look of agony was plastered on his face. Bonnie was looking at him, her hands dropped to her sides and a mad, almost disturbed look in her eye. One eyebrow was raised as if she was challenging him to fight back.

"Bonnie!" I screeched, running over to Damon, "what the hell are you doing to him?"

"He deserves this, Piper! He's a vampire, an evil, unnatural vampire! Just like Katherine and Stefan and now Caroline" Bonnie replied in what was an eerily calm voice considering what she was doing to my boyfriend.

"He hasn't done anything! He didn't do this to Caroline, and he's not evil…he's done bad things sure but he's not an evil person!"

Bonnie cackled at me, a bit like a maniac. She let her gaze flicker from Damon for a moment. A streak of fire began licking across the floor, encircling Damon and me. I shrieked as the heat of the flames reached me.

"Bonnie! Stop!" I pleaded.

She didn't listen to me. Her eyes were glazed over like she didn't really realise what she was doing to us. The ring of fire seemed to be growing smaller and smaller until I was pressed against a crouched groaning Damon. My heart was pounding in my chest. I was terrified. But I couldn't let this happen. I couldn't let this happen to Damon but most of all I couldn't let this happen to Athena. I couldn't leave her without a mother. I wouldn't.

Bonnie was standing just outside the circle of fire. I locked my jaw and dived out of the circle. Fire licking and burning at me jeans, reaching my flesh. I didn't have time to recognise it though. I leapt towards her, one arm circling her waist the other pushing her shoulder. We crashed to the ground, my head hitting the pavement at a very painful angle. The fire didn't go out though and I could still hear Damon groaning in pain.

"God Bonnie I don't want to do this!" I whispered before hitting her square in the face.

I must have hit her hard enough because her eyelids fluttered and then she was out. The flames stopped immediately and I heard Damon pull himself to his feet. Just at that moment I saw Elena, Caroline and Stefan come round the corner, running. Damon was crouched over me. My eyes were blurred and suddenly it was like my legs were still in the fire and my head was throbbing.

"Piper!" I heard Elena yell as she raced towards me.

"Damon" I whimpered, "it hurts"

"I know sweetheart, I'm going to make the pain go away"

"Hmm…'kay" I mumbled, my eyes closing.

I felt a hand lift the back of my head and something press against my mouth. Something warm and weird ran down my throat.

"What happened?!" Elena said in a muffled, fuzzy voice.

"She nearly died…for me" Damon replied hesitantly.

I tried to say something but couldn't muster the energy. It felt like I'd been drugged, like I'd been knocked around a bit. The voices blurred and fuzzed till I couldn't hear anything, leaving me in a silent void of blackness.


	16. Chapter 16

_Here's a little chapter to keep you all going :) thank you all so much for your support of the last chapter and this story. I can't believe so many people enjoy my writing! Please let me know what you think! _

_Rachel x _

Chapter 16

Beep…Beep…Beep. What was that noise? Beep…Beep. How annoying? Why was my head pounding? Beep…Beep…Beep. Why did I feel like I'd been hit by a bus and then run over by a few dozen cars after that? My brain felt sluggish and fuzzy. I tried to open my eyes, but it seemed like the message was taking forever to go to my brain. I could hear voices, they sounded tinny and far away.

"What's happening, Damon? Shouldn't she be awake by now? You gave her your blood! It should have healed her by now!" I heard Elena hiss.

"How the hell should I know, Elena! I fed her my blood…obviously it worked or she'd be dead right now!" Damon snapped.

Damon had fed me his blood? Why? And then I remembered what had happened. How Bonnie had tried to kill Damon, how I'd jumped through the flames and cracked my head off the concrete. I wanted to tell them that I was ok, just groggy but I couldn't get my brain to listen to me. It was very frustrating.

"Calm down, both of you!" I heard Stefan interject "maybe Piper had an adverse affect to your blood, Damon, but at least she's alive. That's all that matters!"

Ah, Stefan, always the peace maker. He truly was a good person, no matter what he'd done in the past. It was obvious that he hated conflict, even with his brother who he had such a turbulent relationship with.

I heard a sigh and Damon grumbling under his breath. Chairs scraped across the floor and then I felt a pressure on my hand. A thumb rubbing circles into my palm. It was soothing, a reassurance that he was there for me, that the man I loved was waiting there for me to wake up. I struggled to understand how much time was passing but it seemed to me like they sat there with me for a while.

After what seemed an age of trying to make my brain listen to me, I heard the chairs scraping across the floor, but Damon, the one who'd been stroking my hand, remained seated. I was thankful; I didn't want to go through all this alone.

"We're going to go check on Caroline" Stefan told Damon.

I hoped Caroline was ok, she didn't deserve what was happening to her. I hoped that Stefan was helping her come to terms with all this. I hadn't known her all that long, but I'd grown to think of her as a good friend. She was a sweet girl, a little selfish and ditzy sometimes, but she had a good heart, and she was always great to me and Athena. When I woke up I would do everything I could to help her.

"See you later, Damon…hope you wake up soon, Piper" Elena mumbled.

There were footsteps, the sound of a door opening, and a soft click as it closed. I heard Damon shuffle his chair closer. I felt soft lips rest on my hand, pressing a kiss into my skin.

"Please wake up, Piper, please" Damon whispered, I had to strain my ears to hear him, "I need you to wake up, Piper, I need you by my side. You're the only one who keeps me sane. You saved my life, without you, the witch would have roasted me!"

His confession was true, I could hear it in his words, they were filled with pure emotion, and I could hear desperation in it too. He sighed.

"Your mom's downstairs and Libby's there too. They've been here the whole time. They're worried about you; they need you to wake up. Don't worry about Athena and Carter, Jenna and Elena are looking after them. Everybody is worried about you Piper, please just wake up"

I must have lost consciousness again because when I next woke up I couldn't feel the reassuring pressure of Damon's hand against mine. I could hear a voice though, this time it was the voice of my sister. I realised she was talking to me.

"So Elena says there was a fire, and that you fell and cracked your head. To be honest, I'm not too sure I believe her. There's something going on with everyone, even Tyler. Anyway, the doctors say I should talk to you, that you might be able to hear me" Libby told me, she took a deep breath, "well, I want to apologise, for what I said…about you and Rory and everything. I know you'd never just take him back, that you're just doing right by Thea. So, yeah, I hope you can forgive me for that"

Of course I forgave her, she was my sister, my twin, and in a way she had been right in what she'd said. She was quiet; I could hear her soft breathing. My head was still drowsy but I fought it, I didn't want to fall asleep.

"I've got a confession to make, Piper, and I guess it's easier to tell you if your unconscious, you won't be able to freak out or scream at me!" she chuckled "well…the thing is…I'm sort of…well…me and Tyler…we're…well he's my boyfriend, ok? I know you probably think he's a bit of an ass, but he's really a sweet guy… I really like him"

Hah! I was right. I knew there was something going on there. If I could will my brain to do so I'd have been grinning at her. I was pleased for her, glad that she had found someone that could make her happy, that would be able to coax her out of her shell a bit. He just better treat her right or I'd make my vampire boyfriend rough him up a bit. I wondered about what Libby had said, about Tyler being involved in all the 'funny' stuff that went on in Mystic Falls. I know Damon had once said something about him feeling pain when John Gilbert set off some device even though it wasn't meant to harm him, but to be honest I'd never really thought about it. When I got out of my current predicament I'd have to ask Damon or Stefan.

I heard the door open again, and the shuffling of feet as more bodies came into the room.

"Hey, Piper, guess who's here to see you?" Libby told me in a cheery voice"mom, Carter, Aunt Jenna, Jeremy and Athena!"

I felt a kiss being pressed into my forehead.

"Hope your feeling better, sweetie!" I heard mom whisper to me.

Suddenly my body was wrapped up in little arms, and I felt something sticky against my cheek.

"Mwah" was the noise I heard as Carter pressed a sticky, sloppy kiss on my face.

"Any change?" Jenna asked my mom and Libby.

Mom sighed deeply, her hand reaching for and holding mine. I knew what her answer would be before she said it.

"No, the doctors say the coma is her body's way of healing, but they're still confused to what caused all this, they say the fire and the knock to the head shouldn't have done all this" mom informed Aunt Jenna.

"I'm sure she'll come round when she's good and ready, she's strong and healthy, she'll be just fine. Her body's just repairing itself" Jenna told my mom.

"God I hope so" Mom sniffled, I could hear the tears in her voice, "I don't know what I'll do if she doesn't wake up. And Athena! She's just a baby, she can't lose her mother"

My heart broke. Mom sounded so defeated, so without hope. I heard gurgling in the background that must have been my sweet, baby girl. Hearing her and what my mom said made me more determined, so much more ready to fight, to fight to wake up, to fight for my life.


	17. Chapter 17

_I guess I better start this off with a big big apology that obviously doesn't make up for me not posting but I've been swamped with exams and really I've just never had the motivation...until today. I know its not long but its a start right? anyway I hope this is ok...please let me know! x_

Chapter 17

I must have been trapped in a coma for days, I seemed to be unconscious for long periods of time, and then, when I eventually gained conscious thought, I'd fight and fight to wake up. To do something! Blink, move, make a fist, anything! But nothing seemed to work. It left me exhausted, which is strange because my body was in a state of rest. I could hear voices now and then from the doctors or the people who came to see me; but it still sounded funny, like we had bad reception or I was underwater or something.

I was starting to lose hope, I mean, I'd read in an article somewhere that the longer a person is in a coma, the less likely they were to wake up. That thought seemed to constantly circle my mind. That's the thing with being in a coma; you're literally left with your own thoughts. It's quite disturbing really.

But then, after what felt like an age of fighting my body and mind, I awoke, gagging, choking on something. I tried to cough up whatever it was, I spluttered, my eyes watering, panic setting in. I blinked, bright lights blasting my eyes; sensory overload. As I blinked and blinked and choked, I felt a hand on my back and something being pulled from my throat. My vision cleared and I saw a kind looking nurse smiling at me, a tube in her hand. I was a bit grossed out by the gooey saliva on the tube. It felt weird when I breathed but it was a much better feeling that that of choking.

The nurse pushed reached into a pocket and pulled out a pager, she quickly tapped at it. She looked back at me at smiled again. The nurse had a soft face with warm brown eyes that were surrounded by laughter lines.

"Hi, I'm Nurse Jenkins, how are you feeling?" the nurse asked.

"I feel…strange…my head's all woozy and it's like I can't really think straight. Everything's all slow but I'm not really in any pain" I told her.

"Well I have to say, Piper, your situation is pretty unprecedented. You were in a coma but the doctors couldn't figure out why, and your burns healed miraculously quickly. You're most definitely a lucky girl!"

"Hmm" I shrugged.

I couldn't exactly tell her that it must have been the vampire blood that caused this; she'd have sent me off for psychiatric analysis. Nurse Jenkins slapped her palms on her thighs then stood up.

"I've buzzed Doctor Hagen; she'll be along on a minute. Would you like me to send in your mom?"

"Yes, please, thanks"

Nurse Jenkins smiled at me once more and left my room. A moment later my mom rushed in, with Aunt Jenna and Libby on her heels. Mom's eyes became glassy and then tears spilled over. She clattered her bag into the chair and hurled herself towards me. She wrapped her arms around me and held me tight.

"Oh, my baby, I'm so glad you're ok" she sniffed, leaning away slightly, smoothing my hair back with her hand. She gave me a watery smile.

"Athena.." I croaked "where is she?" My voice still wasn't working properly an my throat was sore from the tube that had been shoved down it.

"Honey she's fine, she's with Elena and Jeremy right now, they've been a god send to us, and Jenna too of course! I'll go get Thea and Carter soon, they're dying to see you awake baby!"

She wrapped me in another tight embrace but eventually, she backed off, but still sat beside me in the plastic hospital chair, gripping my like she wouldn't ever let go. Libby hugged me next and then Aunt Jenna.

"You had us so worried!" Aunt Jenna chastised, winking at me, "and you had the doctors stumped!"

"Yeah, well, you know that Piper has always been the incident-prone twin" Libby teased.

"Oi!" I exclaimed "I'm not that bad"

"Oh really? The time you got stuck in the tree trying to rescue Mrs Prescott's cat, aged 15, and the fire brigade had to come get you down? Or when you were playing at the mall and fell, breaking Santa's foot! Just to name a few…" Libby grinned.

I rolled my eyes. Ok so over the years there had been a fair few incidents that some might find embarrassing or humiliating. But hey, everyone has a talent. Mine just happens to be the ability to show yourself up in almost every situation.

It was strange, even though, I'd been in a coma, getting all the rest possible, I was already starting to feel tired. I could feel my eyelids drooping. Mom squeezed my hand and smiled softly at me.

"You're going to be fine sweetie, a bit of rest and you'll be home before you know it!"

"Is it ok if I sleep for a while? I'm so tired and my head just won't keep up!"

"Of course, honey! I best go relieve Jeremy and Elena anyway, I'm sure they could do with a break!" Mom sighed.

She stood up and reached for her bag.

"I''ll come too Nic, I am in dire need of a shower! I really smell" Jenna said, flashing a quick grin at me.

Mom and Jenna headed for the door. Mom hesitated, biting her lip. Libby smiled and threw herself down into the chair next to my bed.

"Don't worry Mom, I'll stay here and look after our little invalid" Libby offered.

"Thanks Lib, I'll be back soon ok? I love you both"

"Love you too mom" we chimed.

I got myself comfy, closing my eyes and settling the covers around me. I was just about to nod off when Libby spoke up.

"Piper?" she drawled.

"Yes?"

"You know when you were in the coma"

"Yes Libby…just spit it out!"

"Did you hear everything we said to you?"

I smirked against my pillow.

"I heard some things, and to answer your next question I know all about you and Tyler Lockwood! Now shush! Let me sleep woman!"

"Piper….Piiiiiiper….oi! Sleepy head wake up….there's something I need to ask you woman!" Damon cajoled in teasing tones.

I groaned, rolling over and rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. Damon was sitting on the chair next to me, looking as dashing as ever. I did notice though that his hair was looking unkempt and his clothes creased.

"Eventually!" Damon laughed, throwing me a wink.

"Oh I'm so very sorry that I was sleeping off a coma!" I giggled. God what was it about this guy that made me giggle like a little kid.

Damon smiled at me, leaned forwards and pressed a smouldering kiss to my lips. I responded by wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him close. After a minute or so, I pulled away, chuckling softly.

"You look a bit…dishevelled shall we say?" I grinned.

"Oi!" he protested "I haven't had much time to worry about vanity when you've been stuck in here!"

"You stayed?"

"Of course!"

I smiled at him and took a sip from the glass of water beside my bed.

"Where's Libby?" I asked.

"Downstairs with your mom, I persuaded them to go get some food"

"Persuaded?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"I didn't compel them, Piper!"

"Don't give me that look, you know its possible!" I laughed, "So, you said you had a question for me?"

"Indeed I do, two in fact".

"Then ask away!"

Damon fidgeted in his seat then looked back to me.

"Why did you save me? You knew what Bonnie was doing was dangerous, yet you risked yourself for me…nobody's ever done that for me before" Damon remarked. He sounded vulnerable, it was strange for him.

It was a really stupid question for him to ask really. I mean to me the answer was obvious, it didn't need any form of clarification, it was obvious.

"Because I love you…duh!" I informed him with an exaggerated roll of the eyes.

Damon smirked cockily at me but his eyes told me how much my words meant to him.

"Good, that was the answer I was looking for…I mean really I should have guessed, I mean who wouldn't love someone as beautiful, dashing and charming as me!" Damon bragged.

"Yeah, yeah, Damon, you're one in a million that's for sure!" I mocked.

Damon reached forward, tickling my sides till I was crying with laughter and my sides ached.

"Is that sarcasm I detect there Miss Waters?"

"Stop! Stop! Please" I squealed.

"Who is the best boyfriend in the world?" he taunted.

"Damon…Damon Salvatore" I gasped "stop…tickling me!"

Damon stopped his torture and smiled down at me as I recovered. His eyes were sparkling and his grin was infectious. God I wanted to kiss him.

"Move in with me" he suddenly whispered.

My heart stopped, lurched, then thumped twice as fast.

"Excuse me?" I squeaked.

"Move in with me"

"Move in with you? Move in with you and Stefan? Move in to the boarding house?" I repeated.

Damon simply nodded.

"What about Athena? And my mom. I can't just leave them"

"Thea would come too…obviously, I'm not stupid, I know you two are a package deal…she's your daughter Piper. And as for your mother, well she'll just have to deal with it, you're nearly eighteen anyway" Damon informed me.

I closed my eyes. He was making some very good, very persuasive arguments.

"I understand if you don't want too, its early days for us and well, I'm…" Damon back peddled.

"Shut up Damon" I interrupted, "as soon as I get out of here I'll be happy to move it with you"

Damon grinned at me and kissed me passionately.

"Now we just have to tell my mother" I sighed.


End file.
